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BV  3785  .M7  W5  1900 
Williams,  Augustus  Warner, 

1844-1920. 
Life  and  work  of  Dwight  L. 


Dwight    Lyman    Moody.    Coi)\riglu  1900  by  D  VV.  Cask cy.ir. 


LIFE  AND  WORK 

OF 

DwiGHT  L.  Moody 


The  Great  Evangelist  of  the  XlXth  Century 

The  Founder  of  Northfield  Seminary,  Mount 

Herman  School  for  Boys  and  the 

Chicago  Bible  Institute 

By  Rev.  A.  W.  Williams, 

Author  of  "Armenia  under  the  Curse  of  Islam," 
WITH  AN  INTRODUCTION 

By  Lawrence  M.  Colfelt,  D.D. 

And  Special  Presentations  of  his  Character, 
Worth  and  Work 

By  Bishop  Cyrus  D.  Foss,  D.  D.,  LL.  D.,  Kerr  Boyce  Tupper,  D.  D., 

S.    W.    Dana,    D.  D.,    Floyd    W.     Tomkins,     D.  D., 

Revs.  F.  B.  Meyer,  A.  C  Dixon,  John  McNeill, 

and  others 

FULLY  ILLUSTRATED 


Copyright  1900 

By 
A.  W.  Williams. 


PREFACE 

The  world's  final  judgment  concerning  its  great  men  will 
always  be  based  upon  the  moral  influences  which  they  have 
incarnated. 

Whether  estimated  by  the  moral  qualities  which  go  to 
make  up  personal  character,  or  by  the  extent  to  which  he  im- 
pressed himself  upon  the  life  of  his  generation,  the  verdict 
given  by  Professor  Drummond  some  years  ago  when  he  said: 
"There  is,  perhaps,  no  more  truly  great  man  living  than  D. 
L.  Moody",  will  be  confirmed  by  the  tribunal  of  the  ages. 

With  the  closing  of  the  century,  the  most  remarkable  man 
who  lived  in  it,  one  whose  name  will  live  with  that  of  Wash- 
ington, the  father  of  his  country,  with  that  of  Lincoln,  the 
savior  of  it,  one  who  preached  to  more  millions  of  men  the 
gospel  of  the  grace  of  God  for  the  salvation  of  a  lost  and 
ruined  world,  who  won  more  souls  to  Jesus  Christ  than  any 
other  man  who  ever  lived,  the  mightiest  evangelist,  save  the 
great  Apostle  to  the  Gentiles,  ever  sent  to  call  men  to  repen- 
tance, the  iron-hearted,  the  grace-refined,  the  glory-crowned 
man  of  God — Dwight  L.  Moody — passed  on  to  his  rest  and 
his  reward. 

This  volume  is  but  a  modest  tribute  of  praise  to  the  work  and 
worth  of  one  who  never  sought  and  little  cared  for  the  praise 
of  men,  whose  best  memorial  is  being  built  up  out  of  the  liv- 
ing stones  he  quarried  from  many  a  pit  of  sin.  More  impres- 
sive and  imperishable  than  any  shaft  of  marble,  or  statue  of 
bronze  are  the  granite  foundations  laid  at  Northfield,  Mount 
Hermon  and  in  the  heart  of  Chicago.  Of  him  it  may  be  truly 
said:  "That  mighty  works  do  follow  him."  His  name  shall 
be  had  in  everlasting  remembrance. 

As  the  mysterious  and  marvelous  beauty  of  the  sunlight  re- 
veals itself  when  falling  on  the  polished  facets  of  a  priceless 


PREFACE. 

gem,  or  on  broken  bits  of  glass  lying  on  the  sands;  when 
flashing  in  the  spray  of  some  water-fall  in  the  glen,  or  when 
shining  clear  and  strong  through  the  departing  rain,  it 
throws  upon  the  eastern  skies  the  rainbow's  mighty  arch:  so 
the  glory  of  the  Sun  of  Righteousness  reveals  itself  as 
it  falls  upon  and  irradiates  Dwight  L.  Moody  and  the  multi- 
tudes of  precious  souls  redeemed  through  his  labors  by  the 
wondrous  power  and  love  of  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord. 

In  the  hope  that  this  record  of  the  life  and  work  of  Mr. 
Moody  may  be  a  source  of  interest  and  profit  to  all  who  read 
it — an  echo  of  the  evangelist's  voice  which  shall  prolong  his 
extraordinary  ministry,  and  a  means  of  saving  many  souls,  it 
is  committed  to  the  pleasure  of  the  public,  and  to  the  favor  of 
Almighty  God.  A.  W.  WILLIAMS. 

Philadelphia,  January,  1900. 


CONTENTS 

I.     Preface 3 

IL     Introduction 9 

III.  Boyhood  and  Early  Life 21 

IV.  Goes  out  into  the  World 40 

V.     Early  Career  in  Chicago 51 

VI.     Begins  to  Live  by  Faith 70 

VII.     Young  Men's  Christian  Association 79 

VIII.     Builds  His  First  Church 94 

IX.     Farwell  Hall  105 

X.     Finds  a  Larger  Sphere 118 

XI.     The  Great  Chicago  Fire 134 

XII.     Moody  and  Sankey  in  England 150 

XIII.  Great  Work  in  Scotland  175 

XIV.  The  Great  Revival  in  Philadelphia 192 

XV.     Northfield  Seminary  Life 209 

By  Mrs.  A.  W.  Yale  (One  of  the  girls.) 

XVI.     The  Northfield  Conference  233 

By  Rev.  W.  Dayton  Roberts,  D.D. 

XVII.     Mount  Hermon 262 

XVIII.     The  World's  Fair  Campaign 271 

XiX.     The  Chicago  Bible  Institute 290 

XX.     Mr.  Moody's  Last  Campaign 300 

XXI.     The  Funeral  at  Northfield 330 

XXII.     Memorial  Services  in  Philadelphia 344 

XXIII.     What  Moody  Was 347 

By  Bishop  Cyrus  D.  Foss,  D.D.,  LL.D. 


CONTENTS. 

XXIV.  At  the  Funeral — an  Address 350 

By  Hon.  John  Wanamaker. 

XXV.  How  Norllificld  Seminary  Originated 355 

By  Ira  D.  Sankey. 
XXVI.     Lessons  from  His  Character  and  Career  .  . .     358 
By  Rev.  S.  W.  Dana,  D.D. 

XXVII.     Mr.  Moody's  Sincerity 363 

By  Rev.  Floyd  W.  Tomkins,  D.D. 

XXVIII.     My  Last  Talk  with  Moody  366 

By  Rev.  Way  land  Hoyt,  D.D. 

XXIX.     Dwight  L.  Moody  as  a  Man 369 

By  Kerr  Boyce  Tupper,  D.D. 

XXX.     The  Man  and  his  Message 374 

By  Rev.  A.  C.  Dixon. 
XXXI.     Mr.  Moody's  Impress  on  the  Religious  Life 

of  Scotland  382 

By  John  McMurtrie,  D.D.,  of  Edinburgh. 

XXXII.     A  Tribute  from  Glasgow 387 

By  Rev.  John  McNeill. 

XXXIII.  A  Tribute  from  London 391 

By  Rev.  F.  B.  Meyer. 

XXXIV.  A  Tribute  from  the  South 397 

By  Rev.  Wm.  E.  Hatcher,  D.D. 
XXXV.     Moody  as  a  Preacher 402 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

1.  Dvvight  Lyman  Moody.     Portrait Frontispiece 

2.  Moody  in  his  Library 32 

3.  Birthplace  of  Mr.  Moody 33 

4.  Mrs.  Moody  and  Grandchildren 56 

5.  Mr.  Moody's   First  Sunday  School  Class.     "Does 

it  Pay?"   56 

6.  Mr.  Moody's  First  Sunday  School  Class.     ''It  does 

Pay."  .'. 56 

7.  Mr.  Moody's  Mother   57 

8.  Ira  D.  Sankey.     Portrait   128 

9.  Rev.  F.  B.  Meyer.     Portrait 129 

10.  Henry  Drummond.      Portrait 144 

11.  Rev.  G.  Campbell  Morgan.     Portrait 145 

12.  John  Wanamaker.       Portrait 192 

13.  Rev.  J.  Wilbur  Chapman.     Portrait 193 

14.  Old  Depot  in  Philadelphia.     Interior 208 

15.  Old  Depot  in  Philadelphia.     Exterior   209 

16.  View  of  Northfield  Seminary 209 

17.  Marquand  Hall 210 

18.  Talcott  Library 211 

19.  Skinner  Gynmasium 212 

20.  Model  of  Solomon's  Temple  at  Northfield 213 

21.  Main  Street,  looking  South   215 

22.  Main  Street,  looking  North 215 

23.  Main  Street,  looking  South  from  Belden  Rock  ....   216 

24.  Old  Field  House 217 

25.  An  Old  Northfield  Residence 217 

26.  Mr.  Moody's  Home,  from  the  North 218 

2y.     Rear  of  Marquand  Hall   219 

28.  View  from  Tower  of  Auditorium 219 

29.  Alain  Street,  East  Northfield 220 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

30.  Northfield  from  Across  the  River  221 

31.  Old  Bridge  Across  Connecticut  River 221 

32.  Tiie  Moody  Residence 223 

:i^.  Residence  of  A.  P.  Fitt,  Mr.  Moody's  Son-in-law  .  .   223 

34.  Mr.  Moody's  Donkey   225 

35.  Marquand  Hall,  from  Residence  of  D.  L.  Moody  .  .   225 

36.  Main  Street,  East  Northfield,  looking  North 227 

37.  Old  East  Northfield  Post  OfBce 227 

38.  Round  Top 229 

39.  Minnehaha  Lake 229 

40.  View  from  Round  Top 230 

41.  A  Northfield  Residence 231 

42.  Hotel  Northfield 231 

43.  View  of  Northfield 233 

44.  Meeting  upon  Round  Top 234 

45.  South  Vernon  Station 235 

46.  Store  at  South  Vernon 235 

47.  Congregational  Church   236 

48.  The  Auditorium 237 

49.  Meeting  of  August  Conference  in  Auditorium  ....   237 

50.  Residence  of  Dr.  A.  T.  Pierson 238 

51.  Site  of  First  Y.  M.  C.  A.  Camp 239 

52.  View  from  Camp  Northfield 239 

53.  Group  of  Campers   240 

54.  Farewell  to  Camp  Northfield 240 

55.  Rev.  R.  A.  Torrey.     Portrait 288 

56.  Reading  Room,  Chicago  Institute  289 

57.  Chicago  Institute  Staircase 289 

58.  Chicago  Institute  Class  of  '99 304 

59.  Rev.  C.  L.  Scofield.     Portrait  305 

60.  Mr.  Moody  in  his  Carriage   320 

61.  Sankey  and  his  Friends  at  Norflifield 321 

62.  Mr.  Moody   Leading  Morning  Prayers  at  Camp 

Northfield 336 

63.  Snap-shot  of  Moody 337 


INTRODUCTION 

By  Rev.  Lawrence  M.  Colfelt,  D.  D. 

In  the  magnificent  chapter  of  De  Toqueville's  Democracy, 
he  traces  the  gradual  but  irresistible  progress  of  Democracy 
through  modern  European  history.  He  points  out  how  the 
most  considerable  events  and  most  opportune  discoveries 
have  alike  ministered  to  the  growth  of  the  power  of  the  peo- 
ple. The  crusades  which  desolated  and  impoverished  the 
great  feudatory  families,  the  invention  of  gunpowder  which 
makes  the  common  soldier  a  more  destructive  power  than  the 
Homeric  Chief;  the  invention  of  the  printing  press  which 
placed  knowledge  within  the  reach  of  the  humblest,  in  Eng- 
land the  "Wars  of  the  Roses"  which  overthrew  the  Barons, 
in  France  the  policy  of  the  Kings  which  in  alliance  with  the 
people  humbled  and  subjected  the  nobles — the  reformation 
with  its  vindication  of  the  paramount  authority  of  the  Scrip- 
ture and  the  indefeasible  right  of  private  judgment — all  alike 
ministered  to  the  silent  rise  of  Democracy,  and  the  steady  ac- 
cumulation of  power  in  the  hands  of  the  people. 

This  process  has  been  silently  and  irresistibly  going  on 
from  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century  to  its  close. 
The  most  important  fact  in  the  secular  history  of  the  century 
has  been  the  steady  expansion  of  the  reign  of  the  people. 
The  most  significant  fact  in  the  religious  history  of  the  cen- 
tury has  been  the  tendency  to  alienation  on  the  part  of  the 
masses  from  the  church  and  Christianity.  It  was  the  very  na- 
ture of  Christ's  religion  that  "the  common  people  heard  him 
gladly,"  and  "to  the  poor  the  gospel  is  preached."     Jesus 


10  INTRODUCTION. 

Christ,  whom  we  call  Master  and  Lord,  had  only  sweet  smell- 
ing hay  for  his  first  infant  bed.  For  thirty  years  of  His  life 
He  was  only  known  as  a  thoughtful,  high-minded  working 
man.  The  hands  that  blessed  the  children,  healed  the  sick 
and  raised  the  dead,  were  labor  hardened  with  years  of  toil. 
He  displaced  forever  all  the  burdensome  rites  and  ceremonies 
which  had  pressed  for  centuries  so  heavily  on  the  people.  The 
founder  of  Christianity  took  the  two  commonest  actions  of 
life,  washing  and  eating,  and  made  them  the  symbols  of  the 
Christian  sacraments — of  the  indwelling  presence  of  God  him- 
self, thereby  consecrating  the  natural  elements  and  making 
the  whole  of  man's  conmion-placc  life  sacramental.  The 
Christianity  of  Christ  was,  from  beginning  to  end,  an  absolute 
and  unique  assertion  of  the  dignity — the  spiritual  priesthoDd 
of  man  as  man  apart  from  all  social  distinction.  If  then 
Christianity  and  the  people  ever  become  in  a  measure  separa- 
ted, must  there  not  be  fault  somewhere?  If  the  whole  ten- 
dency of  the  century  has  been  toward  Democracy,  and  it  is  the 
essential  characteristic  of  Christianity  to  be  intensely  demo- 
cratic, then  there  must  be  something  inherently  lacking  in  our 
nineteenth  century  presentation  of  Christianity  which  fails  to 
attract  the  masses. 

How  shall  the  masses  be  reached?  How  shall  Christianity 
restore  its  ancient  power  over  the  people?  How  shall  they  be 
brought  once  more  to  mingle  in  church  worship  and  at  the 
family  table  of  all  God's  children.  This  has  been  the  gravest 
religious  question  for  the  solution  of  our  century.  How  is 
this  mighty  power  of  the  people  to  be  made  a  Christianized 
power  owning  obedience  to  the  eternal  laws  which  are  the  ul- 
timate bonds  of  rule?     On  the  solution  of  this  question  de- 


INTRODUCTION.  n 

pends  the  future  welfare  of  the  nation  and  the  race.  The  min- 
isters of  all  denominations  have  felt  the  supreme  gravity  of 
this  problem.  Individuals  have  searched  their  own  hearts 
and  vexed  their  minds  to  the  utmost,  in  order  to  find  some  re- 
ply. Conference  after  conference  has  been  held  for  the  pur- 
pose of  desiderating  and  defining  methods  of  reUgious  attrac- 
tion to  which  the  masses  will  respond.  But  the  method  of 
Providence  has  never  been  to  accomplish  revolutions  by 
means  of  conferences  and  councils.  When  He  wanted  Chris- 
tianity to  burst  the  long  venerated  bonds  of  Judaism,  to  plant 
the  standard  of  the  cross  on  the  ruins  of  Levitical  observan- 
ces, and  to  expand  Christianity  from  a  provincial  faith  to  a 
world-wide  religion,  He  raised  up  the  Apostle  Paul.  When 
God  wanted  to  rescue  the  Christian  Church  from  the  corrup- 
tion of  the  Romish  Hierarchy  he  filled  the  soul  of  Martin 
Luther  with  moral  indignation.  The  method  of  Providence 
has  ever  been  to  precipitate  revolution  by  means  of  individ- 
uals. So  when  the  hour  had  come  to  solve  the  problem  of 
reaching  the  masses  he  reared  and  consecrated  Dwight  L. 
Moody.  While  others  were  conferring  and  philosophizing 
he  plunged  without  plan  or  system  or  preconception  of  any 
kind  into  the  actual  work  of  bringing  the  people  to  Christ 
and  His  church.  He  was  given  of  God  as  an  object  lesson 
of  the  way  in  which  the  problem  of  the  century  is  to  be  solved. 
What  was  the  secret  of  his  success  in  accomplishing  that 
which  was  the  despair  of  the  church  and  her  ministry?  Was 
it  his  gifts?  No;  many  possessed  larger  endowments  who 
are  less  successful.  Was  it  his  rhetorical  utterance  and  force 
of  expression?  No;  many  are  more  eloquent  with  fewer  and 
meaner  results.     Was  it  the  holy  consistency  of  his  life?     No; 


12  INTRODUCTION. 

many  as  saintly  men  are  less  useful.  What,  then,  was  the 
secret  of  Mr.  Moody's  extraordinary  power  over  the  masses? 
It  is  not  in  our  power  to  define  such  a  subtle  thing  as  the 
influence  of  this  remarkable  man  for  many  of  the  most  im- 
portant elements  will  evaporate  in  the  analysis. 

But  first  among  the  qualities  which  made  him  the  evangel- 
ist of  the  century  was  the  fact  that  he  was  the  religious  tribune 
of  the  people.  He  had  the  gift  of  establishing  confidence  at 
once  with  every  hearer.  He  entered  in  at  their  doors  and 
then  made  them  go  out  by  his.  This  capacity  to  enter  into 
the  soul  of  the  average  man  to  feel  its  pulse,  to  diagnose  its 
wants,  to  express  to  itself  its  own  aspiration  was  the  peculiar 
gift  of  Mr.  Moody;  God-given  without  doubt,  but  also  accen- 
tuated by  the  fact  that  he  was  himself  a  man  of  the  people 
and  had  passed  personally  through  all  the  shades  of  human 
experience.  He  did  not  need  to  stoop  to  men  in  order  to  ad- 
dress them.  He  was  already  one  of  them — had  lived  their 
life — pulsated  with  their  experience.  To  get  into  a  state  of 
sympathy  with  the  masses  required  no  effort  on  his  part.  To 
have  a  fellow  feeling  for  them  involved  no  condescension. 
It  was  well  for  Mr.  Moody  that  he  had  no  college  education. 
For  the  study  of  books  is  not  enough  to  reach  the  masses. 
The  study  of  the  habits,  minds,  manners  of  men  is  most  im- 
portant— otherwise  knowledge  is  like  gold  buried  in  the 
mountains.  "The  Good  Shepherd  knows  his  sheep  and  is 
known  of  them."  It  was  this  practical  knowledge  intuitive 
and  acfiuired  which  enabled  Mr.  Moody  to  bring  Christianity 
into  contact  with  the  masses. 

There  is  a  tendency  among  the  people  to  fancy  themselves 
despised  by  the  learned.     Suspicion  on  that  point  is  fatal  to 


INTRODUCTION.  X3 

anyone  attempting  to  reach  them.  The  people  are  impla- 
cable of  the  conscious  superiority  of  culture.  It  savors  of 
contempt.  And  they  can  forgive  those  who  oppress  them 
and  overwork  them,  but  they  will  not  forgive  those  who  be- 
tray the  consciousness  that  they  are  their  superiors.  To  be 
looked  down  upon  is  the  last  indignity.  In  the  presence  of 
Mr.  Moody  all  suspicion  of  this  sort  yielded  at  once.  Not  a 
shadow  of  distrust  was  possible  for  an  instant.  They  felt 
themselves  in  the  presence  of  a  man  who  reverenced  them  as 
his  peers.  He  secured  at  once  the  unprejudiced  attention  of 
every  hearer.  This  done,  he  went  directly  to  the  main  point 
stirred  up  men's  consciences,  appealed  to  the  better  part  of 
human  nature,  to  those  sentiments  which  caused  their  hearts 
to  vibrate  most  and  then  elevated  their  souls,  warning  them 
from  the  prepossessions  of  indifiference,  worldliness  and  pas- 
sion, and  imparting  to  them  the  inspiration  of  Christianity. 

The  accent  of  conviction  was  a  powerful  factor  in  Mr. 
Moody's  preaching.  He  spoke  with  the  authority  of  vitalized 
experience.  There  was  never  anything  vague  or  wavering 
in  the  content  of  his  thought.  What  an  intense  spiritual  flow 
there  is  in  his  words!  Whatever  may  have  been  his  intellect- 
ual Hmitations,  there  is  never  any  hesitation  as  to  his  own  in- 
tense faith.  His  realization  of  divine  truth  as  a  solid  reality 
— his  spiritual  certitude  is  never  for  a  moment  disturbed  or 
darkened  by  a  subtility  or  inconsistency.  The  rock  is  always 
beneath  his  feet.  The  divine  foundation  is  never  doubtful. 
Lay  preaching  has  often  been  opposed  by  ecclesiastics  on  the 
ground  that  it  would  give  rise  to  heresy.  But  if  church  his- 
tory is  worthy  any  reliance,  not  laymen  but  learned  ecclesi- 
astics have  generally  been  the  originators    of    heresy.    In 


14  INTRODUCTION. 

point  of  soundness  in  the  faith,  Mr.  Moody  could  have  given 
lessons  in  theology  to  not  a  few  who  though  ordained  teachers 
in  the  churches  are  giving  forth  no  better  light  than  that  of 
wandering  stars. 

Mr.  Moody's  loyalty  to  the  Scriptures  was  supreme.  The 
Bible  had  all  its  meaning  to  him  as  a  direct  revelation  from 
God.  He  saw  God  everywhere  moving  through  its  holy 
pages  and  instructing  him — the  living  God  to  whom  he  could 
go  as  having  the  words  of  eternal  life.  All  his  knowledge 
and  thought  began  in  the  word  of  God.  It  was  this  which 
made  him  so  jealous  of  certain  modes  of  historical  criticism 
which  it  must  be  freely  confessed  he  did  not  fully  appreciate. 
But  in  the  presence  of  Moody  it  was  not  possible  to  doubt  of 
a  divine  authority,  an  inspired  Bible.  While  the  scientific 
world  was  proclaiming  "God  unknown"  and  the  critical  world 
was  hiding  Him  from  view  with  its  historical  puzzles,  there 
was  a  reality  in  Moody's  faith  in  the  God  of  the  Bible  that  left 
no  room  for  doubt.  No  modern  preacher  was  so  intensely 
and  powerfully  Biblical. 

Of  all  men  of  our  time  he  seems  to  have  realized  most  viv- 
idly the  atonement,  the  preeminence  of  the  cross  of  Christ. 
We  do  not  mean  in  his  personal  life  merely,  but  as  the  center 
of  all  religion  and  all  life,  as  the  core  of  all  human  good — per- 
sonal, domestic,  social,  national,  religious.  It  was  said  of 
Spinoza  by  Novalis  that  he  was  a  God-intoxicated  man.  But 
of  all  modern  men  Mr.  Moody  seems  to  have  most  deserved 
the  name  of  a  Christ-intoxicated  man.  He  lived  a  life  hid 
with  Christ.  The  Christ  embraced  him.  He  did  not  need  to 
strive  after  it  or  seek  it  like  most  men  by  the  path  of  mystic- 
ism.    It  was  the  Alpha  and  Omega  of  all  his  being,  the  only 


INTRODUCTION.  15 

reality  in  comparison  with  which  all  other  things  were  shad- 
owy. Everything-  was  from  Christ  with  him  and  all  his 
strength  came  straight  out  of  Christ.  It  was  this  more  than 
anything  which  made  him  a  mighty  spiritual  power. 

He  was  a  man  of  faith.  In  respect  of  temporal  things  his 
trust  in  God  was  simple  and  strong.  With  no  stated  income 
he  seemed  to  be  above  care.  His  check  book  was  the  Word 
of  God  which  says,  "My  God  shall  supply  all  your  needs  ac- 
cording to  his  riches  in  glory  by  Christ  Jesus,"  and  he  drew 
larger  drafts  on  this  divine  bank  than  any  man  in  modern 
times  w'ith  possibly  the  exception  of  George  Muller.  In  the 
work  of  winning  souls  his  faith  was  unbounded  and  rose  to 
the  sublime.  He  had  confidence  that  the  eternal  love  of  God 
and  the  sacrifice  of  Christ  fully  presented  to  men  would  work 
great  results.  He  believed  that  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost 
made  the  preaching  of  the  gospel  the  most  hopeful  business 
of  the  world.  Divine  sovereignty  and  divine  love  are  certain 
to  co-operate  with  the  appointed  means.  And  it  was  to  him 
according  to  his  faith! 

But  it  is  not  enough  to  say  good  things  and  have  faith  in 
them — they  must  be  well  said.  This  applies  to  all  preachers 
but  more  especially  to  the  evangelist.  No  one  requires  so 
much  natural  tact  as  the  successful  evangelist.  To  none  is 
the  absence  of  this  (|uality  so  fatal.  Mr.  Moody  had  the  wis- 
dom of  the  serpent  with  the  harnilessness  of  the  dove.  No 
one  could  surpass  liini  in  tactful  arrangements  of  his  cam- 
paigns and  in  creating  favorable  environments  for  his  audi- 
ences. When  he  entered  into  the  actual  work  of  preaching 
he  thoroughly  interested  his  hearers  from  start  to  finish.  He 
solved  the  vital  question  of  how  to  get  men  to  listen  and  to 


I6  LNTRODUCTION. 

cause  the  gospel  truth  to  reach  their  ears,  their  minds,  their 
hearts.  If  one  could  actually  discover  this  power  by  which 
he  secured  a  hearing  it  would  solve  the  greatest  problem  con- 
fronting the  ministry. 

From  the  outset  Mr.  Moody  excited  interest  by  choosing 
a  theme  of  universal  concern,  appealing  to  the  great,  simple 
passions  of  the  human  soul,  to  the  deepest  wants  of  the  hu- 
man heart,  and  by  a  well  digested  study  of  his  theme,  by  a 
perfect  adaptation  to  men  as  they  are,  by  an  unsophisticated 
style,  by  simplicity  of  language,  by  spirited  illustrations  and 
metaphors  drawn  from  actual  incidents  of  every  day  life,  by 
heart  stirring  impulses  and  emotions,  he  made  his  audience 
think  and  feel  with  him.  At  times  they  could  divine  his  train 
of  thought  and  that  gratified  them.  At  other  times  he  sur- 
prised them  and  that,  too,  would  please  them.  There  never 
was  anything  cold,  official  or  tedious  or  routine  about  his 
sermon.  If  he  perceived  the  attention  of  his  hearers  was 
flagging  he  stimulated  it  by  some  lively  speech  and  drew  from 
them  a  smile  which  bespoke  renewed  interest  and  assent. 
But  he  never  used  sallies  of  this  kind  for  their  own  sake  but 
always  as  a  vantage  ground  for  impressing  wholesome  truth. 
Thus  he  required  attention  but  did  not  put  a  strain  upon  it. 
?Ic  was  serious  without  being  wearisome,  cheerful  without 
catering  to  the  instinct  for  amusement,  stirring  without  being 
sensational,  impressive  without  being  exciting,  highly  emo- 
tional without  being  hysterical,  intense  without  tearing  pas- 
sion to  tatters. 

Invincible  optimism  was  a  conspicuous  element  of  his 
method.  In  his  estimation  the  preaching  of  the  Divine  Word 
to  the  people  wearied  with  toils  and  cares  should  be  a  rest,  a 


INTRODUCTION.  17 

joy,  or  as  the  Scriptures  say,  a  "refreshment."  It  should  be 
to  them  what  a  spring  of  water  surrounded  with  verdure  is  to 
wearied  soldiers  marching  through  the  scorching  sun  and 
burning  sands  of  Africa.  Such  was  the  preaching  of  Moody. 
Under  its  breath  the  souls  of  men  dilated  as  it  were  and  the 
saddest  felt  less  unhappy.  His  was  the  gospel  the  angels 
sung  at  the  nativity  what  time  they  touched  our  world  with 
their  wings.  "I  bring  you  glad  tidings  of  great  joy"  was  the 
key  note  of  his  preaching.  His  hearers  in  spite  of  toils,  trials 
and  fears,  after  listening  went  away  saying  within  themselves, 
"The  words  of  the  preacher  have  cheered  me.  I  feel  that  life 
is  better  worth  the  living." 

But  the  great  secret  of  Mr.  Moody's  strength  lay  in  his 
intense  self-denying  love  of  souls.  To  address  men  well  they 
must  be  loved  much.  Whatever  they  may  be  though  never 
so  indifferent  or  guilty,  before  all  and  above  all  they  must  be 
loved.  Love  is  the  sap  of  the  gospel,  the  magic  power  of  elo- 
quence. The  end  of  preaching  is  to  reclaim  the  hearts  of 
men  to  God  and  nothing,  but  love  can  find  out  the  mysterious 
avenues  which  lead  to  the  heart.  Paul,  the  great  evangelist 
of  the  Christian  Church,  overcame  heathen  prejudice  by  the 
power  of  his  charity.  "I  will  very  gladly  spend  and  be  spent 
for  you  though  the  more  abundantly  I  love  you  the  less  I  be 
loved."  The  silver-tongued  Chrysostom  in  addressing  the 
believers  said:  "I  love  you  and  I  would  willingly  give  you  my 
life!"  Dwight  L.  Moody  was  the  foster  child  of  charity  and 
could  say  with  Paul,  "Owe  no  man  anything,  but  to  love  one 
another."  It  is  this  charity  which  gave  him  such  success  in 
evangelical  preaching.  For  the  most  splendid  reasonings 
may  be  clothed  in  the  grandest  phraseology  and  yet  the  lis- 


i8  INTRODUCTION. 

tener  will  never  fail  to  find  means  with  which  to  neutralize 
and  upset  the  elaborate  structure  of  argument.  What  is  re- 
quired in  reaching  the  masses  is  something  new,  something 
unexpected.  What  is  that?  It  is  love.  For  love  surprises, 
captivates,  is  irresistible.  And  it  is  a  melancholy  fact  that 
there  is  small  belief  in  the  existence  of  disinterestedness 
among  the  people.  They  think  that  no  one  acts  without  a 
motive  of  self  interest.  But  when  the  people  meet  with  one 
who  actually  is  capable  of  real  affection  and  thorough  devot- 
edncss  toward  them  they  are  overcome  and  yield  heartily. 

This  was  the  genius  of  Mr.  Moody.  It  was  not  that  of  high 
intellectual  powers.  He  was  a  man  of  ordinary  mental  gifts 
yet  he  drew  wondering  crowds  and  was  the  means  of  comfort- 
ing thousands.  In  the  noblest  sense  of  the  word  he  was  the 
mightiest  emotional  preacher  of  the  century.  The  audience 
succumbed  to  the  spell  of  emotion  becaus  of  his  own  intense 
emotion.  His  soul  may  be  truly  said  to  have  passed  into 
theirs.  As  he  portrayed  the  sorrow  of  sin  and  the  joy  of  sal- 
vation, as  he  pressed  his  discourses  home,  all  bosoms  panted 
because  his  own  panted.  All  eyes  filled  with  tears  because 
his  own  over-flowed.  In  a  word  he  reached  the  hearts  of  men 
because  he  had  a  heart.  Local  sceptics  wherever  he  went 
were  amazed.  "This  man's  logic,"  said  they,  "is  weak.  How 
comes  it  that  he  is  so  attractive?"  It  came  from  this  that  he 
loved  the  souls  of  men.  He  preached  aflfectionately  and  his 
speech  instead  of  gliding  over  hearts  hardened  by  intellectual 
pride  pierced  even  to  the  dividing  of  the  joints  and  the  mar- 
row. 

In  his  love  for  souls  he  constantly  tore  himself  away  from 
home  and  the  comforts  of  life.     In  the  greatness  of  his  love 


INTRODUCTION.  19 

for  souls  he  gave  himself  to  labor  without  stint  for  a  life-time. 
Not  a  particle  of  flesh  and  blood  was  undevoted.  Every 
power  of  body  and  soul  was  put  into  the  service  and  used  with 
a  will  that  took  out  of  himself  all  he  could  get.  Because  the 
days  were  evil,  he  redeemed  his  time,  and  so  sold  his  life  as 
dearly  as  possible  to  the  uttermost  farthing  of  vital  worth. 
The  fire  of  love  burned  in  his  soul  till  the  heat  of  the  zeal  con- 
sumed him,  and  he  died  of  a  heroic  malady — that  of  hard  work 
for  the  highest  good  of  humanity. 

If  there  is  joy  in  the  presence  of  the  angels  of  God  over  one 
sinner  saved  how  delectable  the  joy  of  this  soul  winner  in  the 
courts  above.  How  many  poor  sinners  in  how  many  lands 
did  he  lead  to  Jesus  feet  to  receive  a  Savior's  pardoning  grace. 
How  many  erring  Christians  did  he  bring  back  to  the  Shep- 
herd and  Bishop  of  their  souls?  How  many  little  ones  did 
he  gather  from  amongst  the  ignorance,  the  suffering,  the 
misery  of  this  life,  to  the  embrace  of  the  divine  arms.  What  a 
mighty  concourse  must  have  gathered  about  the  pearl-gate 
to  welcome  him  w'ho  led  them  to  truth,  to  virtue,  and  to 
heaven.  Was  it  not  to  meet  this  welcome  and  to  enter  into 
the  joy  of  his  Lord  that  he  bade  adieu  to  the  world,  left  Chris- 
tendom bereaved  and  his  household  in  tears?  "Earth  is  re- 
ceding, heaven  is  opening  and  God  is  calling  me." 


Boyhood  and  Early  Life. 

'HERE  are  in  the  human  race-stock  as  great  and  re- 
markable differences  in  genius,  temperament, 
characteristic,  powers  and  accomphshments,  as 
there  are  varieties  among  the  trees  of  the  forest, 
from  the  magnificent  oak  and  towering  pine  down 
to  the  graceful  willow  by  the  water  courses;  or  as  there  are 
among  the  flowers  and  vines  of  the  field  and  garden,  from  the 
roses  and  honeysuckles  that  run  along  the  lattice  work  of 
New  England  porches  to  the  graceful  and  almost  sympathetic 
ivy  which  seeks  to  hide  the  crumbling  ruins  of  some  old 
church  tower  from  the  rude  gaze  of  the  passer-by. 

To  write  a  true,  revealing  biography  of  a  man  one  should 
begin  \vith  his  great-grandfather,  so  as  to  be  able  to  mark 
the  evolutions  and  involutions  of  character  which  have  at 
last  wrought  themselves  out  in  every  fibre,  nerve  and  brain 
cell  of  the  child  just  coming  into  life.  We  may,  however, 
only  turn  over  the  leaves  of  an  old  family  Bible  in  a  farm- 
bouse,  in  Northfield,  Mass.,  which  contains  this  simple  rec- 
ord: "Edwin  Moody  was  born  November  ist,  1800.  Betsy 
Holton  was  born  February  5tH,  1805;  were  married  January 
3d,  1828." 

On  another  page  there  may  be  written  the  name  of 
Dwight  Lyman,  born  February  5th,  1837. 

The  stock  is  English,  of  Puritan  faith  and  loyalty  to  duty, 
and  goes  back  to  the  earliest  settlers  of  the  colony  of  Massa- 
chusetts. Their  lot,  that  of  very  many  New  England  families, 
to  wrest  from  a  cold,  reluctant  soil  a  scanty  living;  compelled 
to  be  content  if  by  dint  of  utmost  self-denial,  the  hardest 
labor  in  the  woods  and  fields,  and  by  spinning  and  weaving, 
by  sewing  and  knitting,  father  and  mother  could  keep  the 
wolf  outside  the  door — he  was  never  very  far  away — could 


22  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

give  tlicir  children  a  meagre  education  and  send  them  out 
into  the  world  with  bare  hands  but  stout  hearts  to  renew  the 
same  weary,  ahnost  hopeless  struggle  of  life,  and  yet  to  do  it 
grandly  and  often  without  murmuring.  It  was  the  inbred 
Puritan  faith  in  the  living,  righteous  God  which  sustained 
them.  The  tender  love  and  care  of  God  the  Father  for  all 
His  children;  the  compassion  and  mercy  of  a  present  Savior, 
were  not  prominent  objects  of  sweet  and  devout  contempla- 
tion in  the  olden  time.  New  England  theology  was  not  cal- 
culated to  make  people  very  happy  as  it  was  preached  in 
those  days  of  bitter  controversy.  But  it  made  men  brave  and 
enduring,  silent  under  most  adverse  circumstances.  Per- 
haps the  easy-going  religion  of  the  present  day  has  taken 
some  of  the  iron  out  of  the  blood  of  their  children. 

Mr.  Moody's  father  died  on  the  28th  of  May,  1841,  very 
suddenly.  He  had  gone  that  morning,  as  usual,  to  his  work, 
that  of  a  stone-mason,  but  feeling  a  pain  in  his  side,  caused 
by  over-exertion  in  lifting  heavy  stone,  he  went  home  to  rest. 
The  pain  grew  much  worse  by  afternoon  and  staggering  to- 
wards the  bed  he  fell  upon  his  knees  and  was  gone  before  any- 
one reahzed  that  he  was  seriously  ill.  A  few  weeks  after  the 
father's  death,  twins  were  born  in  that  house  of  sorrow,  and 
when  the  widowed  mother  rose  from  her  bed,  there  were 
nine  hungry  mouths  to  feed,  from  the  babes  in  her  arms  to 
the  eldest  child,  but  thirteen  years  of  age. 

Some  of  her  worldly-wise  neighbors  advised  her  to  give 
away  or  bind  out  her  children  and  not  try  to  keep  them  to- 
gether. But  she  loved  them  too  dearly,  and  being  endowed 
with  unusual  strength  and  courage  of  mind  and  body,  and 
having  an  underlying  faith  in  God,  though  He  did  seem  so 
very  far  away  at  times,  she  determined  to  keep  her  flock  to- 
gether if  it  were  within  the  extremest  limits  of  her  endurance. 
She  took  up  her  burden  bravely — a  burden  of  unceasing 
struggle  with  sorrow,  care  and  poverty.  She  carried  her 
burden  as  heroically  as  ever  martyr  carried  fagots  for  his  own 


BOYHOOD  AND  EARLY  LIFE.  23 

burning.  She  kept  her  face  as  cheery  as  possible  for  her 
chikh'cn's  sake,  though  long  after,  it  became  known  that  slie 
cried  herself  to  sleep  every  night  almost  for  more  than  a 
year. 

As  the  children  grew  older  the  burdens  and  anxieties  grew 
lighter,  until  at  length  the  lines  of  care  were  smoothed  out 
of  her  face  by  gentle,  loving  fingers,  while  strong,  willing 
hands  poured  out  unceasing  treasures  into  her  lap  and  for 
many  years  Grandma  Moody  lived  to  enjoy  the  boundless 
and  sweetest  care  and  affection  bestowed  upon  her  by  her 
children  and  children's  children.  How  amply  was  she  repaid  at 
last  for  the  years  of  self-sacrifice  and  toil  wdiich  had  kept  her 
flock  safely  by  her  side  through  all  their  tender  years. 

Can  we  wonder  now  at  the  love  and  devotion  to  his  mother 
which  formed  one  of  the  most  impressive  features  in  the  life 
of  D.  L.  Moody?  To  the  early  training  received  in  his  poor 
mountain  home  the  great  evangelist  attributed  those  ele- 
ments of  personal  character  which  crowned  with  success  his 
efiorts  in  spreading  the  gospel  and  in  advancing  the  cause  of 
education. 

It  fell  to  the  lot  of  this  noble  woman  to  be  rewarded  for  her 
struggles  with  poverty  and  debt  as  few  mothers  have  been 
blessed.  She  lived  to  see  her  son  universally  honored.  The 
obsciire  New  England  village  of  Northfield  became  noted  as 
his  birthplace  and  her  home.  Massive  seminary  halls  over- 
shadowed the  homestead.  Across  the  Connecticut  Valley, 
on  the  side  of  Mount  Hermon,  college  buildings  were  erected. 
To  800  students  she  was  known  and  loved  as  "Grandma" 
Moody.  Each  summer  scholars  and  students  from  all  parts 
of  the  world  have  made  pilgrimages  to  that  shrine  of  wor- 
ship and  instruction. 

Habitually  when  returning  to  Northfield  from  his  ministry 
Mr.  Moody  would  drive  direct  to  the  home  of  his  mother  to 
receive  her  welcome  before  joining  his  immediate  family. 
For  more  than  fifty  years  he  sought  counsel  and  approval  at 


24  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

her  knee.  Betsy  Moody  was  spared  to  her  son  until  the  closing 
days  of  her  ninety-first  year.  When  she  began  to  fail  Mr. 
Moody  was  holding  meetings  in  a  distant  city.  It  was  not 
known  that  her  end  was  near  and  he  was  not  notified.  To- 
ward the  close  of  the  week  the  evangehst  became  restless  and 
an  uncontrollable  desire  to  go  home  possessed  him.  For  no 
other  reason  he  canceled  his  engagement  and  started  for 
Northfield,  arriving  at  his  mother's  bedside  in  time  to  receive 
her  last  blessing. 

On  Sunday  morning,  January  26,  1896,  surrounded  by  her 
devoted  children,  she  closed  her  eyes  upon  the  earthly  home 
and  opened  them  amid  the  heavenly  mansions  which  Christ 
has  prepared  for  those  who  love  Him.  She  was  within 
twelve  days  of  her  ninety-first  birthday.  She  had  retained 
full  use  of  all  her  faculties  and  her  mind  and  memory  were 
unimpaired  up  to  the  time  of  her  departure  for  her  eternal 
home.  Her  death  was  literally  a  falling  asleep.  There  was  no 
pain,  no  struggle.  She  had  fought  a  good  fight,  she  had  fin- 
ished her  course,  she  had  kept  the  faith.  And  God  gave  His 
beloved  sleep. 

The  burial  took  place  on  the  Wednesday  after  her  death. 
The  day  was  one  of  surpassing  loveliness  on  the  glorious  hill- 
tops about  Northfield.  At  nine  o'clock  there  was  a  touching 
service  at  the  old  homestead  conducted  by  Dwight  L.  Moody. 
All  of  the  sons  and  daughters,  with  grandchildren  and  many 
relatives,  were  present.  The  service  there  was  beautiful  in 
its  simplicity,  and  was  confined  to  the  family,  relatives  and 
friends.  The  1:)ody  was  then  borne  to  the  church  in  royal 
state.  The  grandsons  were  the  bearers,  while  the  four  hun- 
dred young  ladies  of  the  Seminary  and  the  Training  School 
followed  the  bier  as  "maids  of  honor"  as  Mr.  Moody  called 
them.  Seats  were  reserved  for  the  nearly  eight  hundred  stu- 
dents of  the  two  schools,  and  as  soon  as  the  casket  had  been 
placed  on  the  altar  and  the  face  uncovered,  the  students  slow- 
ly filed  by  the  casket,  the  girls  on  one  side  winding  into  the 


BOYHOOD  AND  EARLY  LIFE.  23 

balconies  and  the  boys  on  the  other  largely  occupying  the 
floor  of  the  church. 

It  was  nearly  eleven  o'clock  before  the  family  and  friends 
came  in  to  the  church.  The  half  hour  was  occupied  by  sing- 
ing softly,  "My  Jesus  as  Thou  Wilt"  and  "Till  He  Comes," 
and  silent  prayer. 

As  the  friends  entered  the  church,  the  choir  of  young  wo- 
men and  the  congregation  sang  "Blessed  Hope." 

This  was  followed  by  the  doxology  and  the  invocation  by 
Rev.  Dr.  Scofield.  The  choir  then  sang  "Resurrection 
Morn."  Miss  Maud  Phillips  and  Mrs.  W.  R.  Moody,  the  lat- 
ter the  daughter  of  Major  Whittle,  the  evangelist,  then  ren- 
dered in  a  charming  way,  "Thou  Remainest." 

Dr.  Scofield  read  the  scripture  lesson,  and  the  choir  and 
congregation  sang  "Some  Sweet  Day," 

Dr.  Scofield  followed  with  an  impressive  address,  speaking 
from  the  words,  "O  death,  where  is  thy  sting;  O  grave,  where 
is  thy  victory?" 

Mrs.  W.  R.  Moody  sang  very  tenderly  "Crossing  the  Bar," 
and  then,  in  the  midst  of  a  profound  silence,  Mr.  Moody  rose 
from  his  seat  in  the  body  of  the  church,  and  walked  to  the 
altar,  and  standing  during  a  large  portion  of  his  address  di- 
rectly at  the  foot  of  his  mother's  coffin,  he  paid  a  touching 
tribute  to  her  memory.  If  not  without  precedent,  Mr. 
Moody's  action  was  certainly  the  first  time  in  recent  years 
that  a  son,  conspicuous  before  the  public,  had  manifested  that 
abiding  faith  which  enabled  him  to  speak  upon  such  an  oc- 
casion. With  tears  coursing  down  his  cheeks  he  told  of  his 
love  for  her  and  of  his  faith  in  God.  He  recalled  many  inci- 
dents of  his  childhood  and  a  thousand  people  were  moved 
alternately  to  tears  and  smiles  by  the  recital.  In  praise  of  his 
mother  Mr.  Moody  said: 

"I  know  it  is  not  customary  for  a  son  to  speak  at  his  moth- 
er's funeral.  If  it  is  possible  for  me  to  control  my  feelings  I 
want  to  pay  her  memory  a  merited  tribute.     It  was  great 


26  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

honor  for  us  to  have  such  a  mother.  I  cannot  praise  her 
enough.  She  was  a  wise  woman.  She  knew  more  than  Sol- 
omon. She  knew  how  to  govern  her  own  sons.  She  was 
a  noble  mother  to  all  of  her  nine  children.  She  displayed 
wonderfully  good  judgment  and  an  almost  marvelous  tact. 
She  was  so  loving  a  mother  that  when  we  were  away  from 
home  we  were  always  anxious  to  get  back.  This  was  true  all 
through  life." 

Mr.  Moody's  words  used  on  this  occasion  are  best  descrip- 
tive of  some  of  the  experiences  of  his  early  life.  "My  father 
(lied  utterly  bankrupt,"  said  he.  "The  creditors  took  every- 
thing. I  can  vividly  recall  this  fact,  because  my  mother  told 
us  we  nmst  stay  in  bed  until  school  time,  for  there  was  no 
wood  in  or  near  the  house  and  no  way  of  creating  warmth.  I 
remember  just  as  vividly  when  I  heard  sounds  of  chips  flying 
and  I  knew  some  one  was  chopping  wood  in  our  woodshed 
and  that  then  we  should  have  warmth. 

"I  shall  never  forget  Uncle  Silas  coming  with  what  seemed 
to  me  the  biggest  pile  of  wood  I  ever  saw  in  my  life.  Many 
other  acts  of  kindness  were  shown  us  by  one  of  the  ministers 
of  the  Unitarian  church  of  this  village.  I  recall  when  I  first 
earned  any  money.  It  was  one  cent  a  week  for  tending  cows. 
It  went  into  the  common  treasury.  Every  penny  was  needed 
and'  was  put  to  the  best  purpose." 

Reverting  to  memories  of  his  mother  the  evangelist  said: 
"Her  love  for  her  husband  lasted  all  through  life.  For  fifty- 
four  years,  to  my  certain  knowledge,  Widow  Moody's  light 
burned  on  yonder  hill.  There  was  one  room  in  that  old 
house  which  I  think  she  loved  best.  It  was  the  room  where 
she  found  God.  It  was  there  He  answered  her  prayers.  How 
she  worked!  In  the  attic  is  the  old  wheel  she  used  for  us. 
And  still  with  all  her  poverty  she  never  turned  the  poor  away 
from  her  door. 

"Within  the  past  forty-eight  hours  T  have  heard  some  things 
about  her  that  have  almost  broken  my  heart.     It  was  that 


BOYHOOD  AND  EARLY  LIFE.  27 

v.'hen  she  was  in  the  midst  of  her  severest  struggles  with  pov- 
erty that  she  bravely  put  on  her  happiest  look  and  ways  dur- 
ing the  day  time,  and  often  wet  her  pillow  with  tears  during 
the  night. 

"That  she  thus  cried,  was  new  to  me.  That  she  prayed,  I 
knew  well." 

Mr.  Moody  then  drew  a  pathetic  picture  of  the  love  the 
mother  felt  for  each  of  her  children.  He  named  them  each, 
and  told  of  the  particular  way  in  which  she  showed  her  love. 
Of  her  love  for  himself  he  said:  'T  never  found  out  what 
mother  did  think  of  me.  Her  words  were  the  sweetest  I 
heard  when  returning  here  after  long  journeys  abroad.  I 
have  in  my  hands  the  old  family  Bible,  so  thoroughly  used 
by  her.  I  suppose  that  when  my  father  died  that  was  the 
only  book  we  had  in  our  house." 

Turning  to  proverbs,  Mr.  Moody  then  read  a  number  of 
sentences  showing  how  admirably  they  fitted  the  character  of 
his  mother  and  making  comments  as  he  read  them. 

Turning  to  the  face  of  his  mother,  Mr.  Moody  said:  "We  do 
not  know  whether  the  departed  can  know  what  is  going  on 
in  this  earth.  If  I  thought  she  could  hear  me  I  would  send 
her  the  message  that  not  only  her  children,  but  her  grand- 
children and  their  children  would  meet  her  in  heaven. 

"I  want  to  say  to  the  young  ladies  of  the  Seminary  who 
acted  as  maids  of  honor  to  escort  my  mother's  body  down 
here  this  morning,  that  I  want  you  to  trust  my  mother's 
Savior.  I  want  to  say  to  the  young  men  of  Mount  Hermon, 
you  are  going  to  have  a  great  honor  to  escort  mother  to  her 
last  resting  place.  Her  prayers  for  you  ascended  daily  to 
the  throne  of  grace.  Now  I  am  going  to  give  you  the  best  I 
have,  I  am  going  to  do  the  best  I  can.  I  am  going  to  lay  her 
away  with  her  face  toward  Hermon.  I  give  you  the  noblest 
heritage  I  possess  on  earth. 

"I  think  she  was  one  of  the  noblest  characters  this  world 
has  ever  seen.     She  was  true  as  sunlight.     I  never  knew  that 


28  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

woman  to  deceive  me.  And  now  we  are  to  lay  her  body  away 
to  await  His  coming  in  resurrection  power.  That  dear 
mother,  when  I  see  her  again,  is  going  to  have  a  resurrection 
body  (looking  at  her  face),  God  bless  you.  Mother:  we  love 
you  still.  Death  has  only  increased  our  love.  Good-bye  for 
a  little  while,  mother." 

Mr.  Moody  then  offered  a  touching  prayer  and  the  services 
at  the  church  were  soon  closed.  What  an  eloquent  and  glow- 
ing tribute  of  love  to  lay  at  his  mother's  feet!  This  the  most 
abiding  honor  to  her  memory — "Her  children  shall  rise  up 
and  call  her  blessed." 

Let  us  now  turn  with  reverent  spirit  to  read  the  brief  story 
of  the  toils  and  trials,  of  the  self-sacrifice  and  devotion  by 
which  she  wrought  out  for  herself  such  a  heritage  of  filial 
affection  and  impressed  the  force  of  her  character  so  inefface- 
ably  upon  the  minds  and  hearts  and  lives  of  her  children. 

After  the  death  of  her  husband,  Mrs.  Moody  had  to  face 
a  great  responsibility,  and  faced  it  in  a  grand  and  heroic  way. 
She  was  a  woman  of  extraordinary  force  of  character.  In 
her  girlhood  days  she  had  been  a  very  great  favorite  every- 
where, full  of  fun,  just  running  over  with  good  humor,  bright 
and  intelligent;  and  withal  a  most  sensible  girl,  economical 
and  industrious,  with  a  most  cheery  disposition,  willing  also 
to  help  everybody  and  without  any  feeling  that  she  was  doing 
anything  that  required  special  commendation. 

At  the  age  of  twenty-three,  Betsy  Holton  made  what 
would  be  called  in  those  days  a  good  marriage,  to  a  thrifty, 
well-to-do  mechanic,  Edwin  Moody,  who  by  farming  a  few 
acres  of  land  and  working  at  his  trade  contrived  to  earn  a 
comfortable  living.  Their  home  was  a  spacious  farm-house, 
a  two-storied,  double-front,  with  an  attic,  standing  by  the 
roadside  under  the  shadow  of  some  beautiful  elms. 

Here  were  spent  thirteen  years  of  happy  life,  until  heavy 
losses  from  an  unfortunate  business  affair  impoverished 
them  and  a  mortgage  of  $400  encumbered  their  home ;  when 


BOYHOOD  AND  EARLY  LIFE.  29 

suddenly  the  death  of  her  husband  threw  all  the  burden  of 
care,  labor  and  anxiety  upon  the  "Widow  Moody." 

Those  were  days  of  sharp  sectarian  controversy  in  religious 
circles.  The  doctrines  were  of  the  hardest  and  most  gloomy 
ever  believed  or  taught  in  orthodox  churches.  To  believe 
that  God  had  foreordained  for  his  own  good  pleasure  the 
destruction  of  a  large  portion  of  the  human  race,  and  that 
without  respect  of  character,  might  have  been  a  great  com- 
fort to  the  saints,  assuring  them  of  a  small  and  select  company 
in  the  great  hereafter;  but  to  the  burdened  widow  it  was  the 
gall  of  bitterness.  She  was  determined  to  do  all  she  could 
to  save  her  children  in  this  life  and  she  insisted  on  believing 
in  a  God  who  would  do  the  same  for  them  in  the  life  to  come. 
But  there  was  another  invention  in  some  of  New  England 
Calvinism,  which  taught  the  duty  of  being  willing  to  be 
damned  for  the  glory  of  God,  if  God  in  his  secret  decree  had 
so  determined.  Some  of  Mrs.  Moody's  neighbors  did  not 
fail  to  exhort  her  to  the  attainment  of  this  rather  mournful 
state  of  mind,  but  against  this  her  soul  did  most  decidedly 
rebel.  If  there  were  any  such  decrees  which  shut  out  any  of 
her  little  flock  from  a  fair  chance  of  heaven,  she  at  least  would 
not  be  tormented  by  them  in  prayers  and  sermons;  and  hence 
she  placed  herself  and  her  family  under  the  instructions  of 
Pastor  Everett,  who  was  for  giving  all  sinners  the  best  possi- 
ble chances  for  salvation,  and  they  were  all  baptized  together 
and"  received  into  the  Unitarian  Church  of  Northfield,  after 
the  fashion  of  those  days.  And  so  the  widow  sought  to  hold 
fast  to  the  hand  of  the  Lord,  and  brought  up  her  children  to 
read  the  Bible  and  to  beheve  in  the  grace  of  God  whereby  she 
hoped  they  would  be  brought  into  His  kingdom. 

To  put  the  whole  story  in  a  nutshell,  it  would  read  a  little 
like  this:  Mrs.  Moody's  brothers  in  Boston  took  care  of  the 
interest  on  the  mortgage;  the  older  boys  took  care  of  the 
little  farm;  the  mother  took  care  of  the  house  and  the  chil- 
dren, and  the  good  Lord  took  care  of  them  all. 


30  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

Mrs.  Moody  bore  with  a  brave  heart  the  weight  of  a  house- 
hold that  would  have  crushed  most  women,  and  cared  for  her 
children  as  best  she  could.  Instead  of  breaking  up  the 
family  as  so  many  of  her  prudent  friends  suggested,  she  kept 
them  all,  as  they  were  able,  busily  at  work  in  the  garden 
picking  berries  and  fruit,  and  doing  chores  for  the  farmers 
around.  And  every  penny  which  could  be  earned  was  brought 
eagerly  home  and  laid  in  mother's  lap. 

These  years  of  toil  and  privation  had  drawn  her  heart  very 
close  to  the  Savior,  and  when  the  care  of  her  large  family  of 
little  children  grew  so  heavy  as  almost  to  overwhelm  her, 
she  learned  to  cast  her  burden  upon  the  Lord.  Her  example 
and  instructions  very  early  made  deep  and  indelible  impres- 
sions upon  the  minds  of  her  children.  For  once  when  her 
son,  Dwight,  was  only  a  little  six-year-old  and  was  driving  the 
cows  to  pasture,  an  old  fence  fell  over  on  him  and  pinned  him 
to  the  ground  so  that  he  could  not  get  away.  But  we  will  let 
the  story  of  his  rescue  tell  itself  in  his  own  words  many  years 
later: 

"I  tried  and  tried,  and  I  couldn't  lift  them  awful  rails;  then 
I  hollered  for  help,  but  nobody  came;  and  then  I  began  to 
think  I  should  have  to  die  away  up  there  on  the  mountain  all 
alone.  But  I  happened  to  think  that  maybe  God  would  help 
me,  and  so  I  asked  him.  And  after  that  I  could  lift  the  rails, 
just  as  easy." 

Sometimes  when  the  boys  were  quarrelsome  and  rebellious, 
and  the  household  was  in  utter  confusion,  Mrs.  Moody 
would  go  away  to  her  own  room  and  pray  for  wisdom  and 
patience.  "And  when  T  would  come  back,"  she  has  said, 
"they  would  all  be  good  children  again."  But  there  were 
times  when  correction  was  needful;  then,  while  never  harsh, 
she  did  not  spare  the  rod;  though  often  her  own  tears  at  be- 
ing compelled  to  use  it  were  the  hardest  part  of  the  punish- 
ment for  the  child.  Mr.  Moody  once  told  of  the  "old-fash- 
ioned whippings"  he  received  at  his  mother's  hands.     "I  be- 


BOYHOOD  AND  EARLY  LIFE.  31 

Heve  in  them  to-day"  he  said.  "She  would  send  me  out  for 
a  stick.  I  thought  I  could  fool  her  and  would  get  a  dead 
stick.  She  would  snap  the  stick  and  then  cause  me  to  get 
another.  She  was  never  in  a  hurry,  and  she  certainly  was 
not  when  she  was  whipping  me.  Once  I  told  her  that  the 
whipping  did  not  hurt  at  all.  I  never  had  occasion  to  tell  her 
so  again,  for  she  put  it  on  so  it  did  hurt." 

While  thus  faithfully,  even  if  painfully,  she  sought  to  train 
her  children;  while  patiently,  lovingly  and  prayerfully  she 
sought  to  fulfill  a  mother's  part.  Airs.  Aloody  did  not  under- 
estimate the  value  and  importance  of  public  Sabbath  worship. 
In  those  early  days  her  children  were  regular,  if  not  particu- 
larly devout,  attendants  at  church.  The  older  boys  who 
might  be  at  work  on  neighboring  farms  would  as  they  were 
permitted,  come  home  on  Saturday  night  so  as  to  go  to 
church  with  their  little  brothers  and  sisters.  j\Ir.  Aloody  has 
declared  that  going  to  church  was  not  a  debatable  question. 
"Frequently  I  have  gone  to  church  barefooted,  carrying  my 
shoes  in  my  hand,  to  save  the  wear  until  I  got  nearly  to  the 
church  door,  when  I  would  put  them  on."  They  used  to 
take  their  dinners  and  stay  all  day,  hearing  the  two  sermons 
and  attending  the  Sunday  school,  which  was  sandwiched  be- 
tween them;  and  then  they  would  come  home  again  for  sup- 
per before  going  back  to  their  places  of  work. 

Such  church  going  was  not  so  wearisome  in  those  early 
days  as  it  might  seem  to  us.  I  myself  have  preached  in  rural 
parishes  in  Scotland  where  similar  customs  still  prevail. 
From  over  the  hills  in  all  directions  the  shepherds  and  their 
families  would  come  to  mingle  \\ith  the  townspeople  in  the 
Sabbath  worship.  In  sunmicr-time  many  of  the  lads  and  las- 
sies would  stop  to  wash  their  feet  in  tlie  "burn"  that  ran  near- 
by and  then  put  on  their  shoes  and  hose  to  come  into  church. 

While  eating  their  cheese  and  oatcake  with  delicious  water 
from  the  spring,  after  morning  sermon  what  pleasure  did 
they  have  in  greeting  their  friends,  to  hear  of  how  the  old 


32  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

folks  were  who  were  left  sitting  at  the  door  of  some  low,  stone 
cottage,  with  its  straw-thatched  roof.  And  the  letters  from 
over  the  seas,  from  Australia,  Africa;  Canada  or  the  United 
States — they  were  to  be  read  over  again.  And  the  young 
folks?  They  were  enjoying  such  meetings  as  young  people 
do  and  will  until  the  end  of  time.  Sunday  school  and  second 
service  done,  they  would  turn  their  steps  homeward  in  com- 
panies that  broke  up  into  smaller  and  smaller  groups  until 
they  all  had  reached  their  scattered  cottages  and  still  more 
lonely  sheep-walks  miles  away. 

These  Sabbaths  were  the  happiest  days  of  the  week  in  that 
modest  home  of  Northfield.  Thus  the  family  were  kept  in 
closest  touch  with  each  other,  and  the  dear  mother.  In 
spite  of  their  poverty  and  trials  there  was  love  and  joy  in  this 
beautiful  home  life.  Toiling  day  and  night  for  daily  bread 
and  often  scraping  the  bottom  of  her  flour  barrel  with  worn 
fingers,  not  always  knowing  where  the  next  barley  cake 
would  come  from,  this  mother  kept  up  a  brave  heart  and 
cheerful  face  for  her  children's  sake  and  Sunday  found  the 
best  things  the  garden  and  pantry  could  supply  for  the  rave- 
nous appetites  of  nine  hale,  hearty,  growing  children.  At  the 
table,  which  was  set  and  waiting  their  return,  Mrs.  Moody 
would  repeat  a  text  of  scripture  or  a  verse  of  a  hymn  and  the 
children  would  say  it  in  chorus  after  her. 

Supper  over,  if  it  were  summer-time,  she  would  gather 
them  all  around  her  on  the  porch  or  under  one  of  the  great 
sugar  maple  trees  in  the  front  yard — Mr.  Moody's  favorite 
seat  in  later  years — and  read  to  them  out  of  the  books  they 
may  have  brought  home.  For  other  books  there  were  none 
in  the  house,  not  even  a  Pilgrim's  Progress.  And  such  won- 
derful stories,  too.  Those  books  seemed  to  know  just  what 
naughty  things  Dwight  or  George  or  Lizzie  had  been  doing 
during  the  week,  or  something  very  much  like  them,  and  con- 
taining such  good  advice  to  each  one,  just  Hke  mother,  only 
the  funny  thing  was  that  the  chil4reii  could  never  find  the 


BOYHOOD  AND  EARLY  LIFE.  33 

place  afterwards.  Then,  just  as  the  sun  was  going  down, 
loving  good-byes  were  said,  and  the  older  boys  were  away  to 
their  work  again  and  the  little  ones  were  folded  to  sleep. 

Although  Dwight  was  only  four  years  old  when  his  father 
died,  he  was  deeply  impressed  by  the  shadow  of  death  that 
fell  on  the  home.  He  has  recalled  in  one  of  his  sermons  his 
childish  horror,  saying,  "The  first  thing  I  remember  was  the 
death  of  my  father.  It  was  a  beautiful  day  in  June  when  sud- 
denly he  fell  dead.  The  shock  made  such  an  impression  on 
me,  young  as  I  was,  that  I  shall  never  forget  it.  I  remember 
nothing  about  the  funeral,  but  his  death  has  made  a  lasting 
impression  upon  me."  For  long  years  after  that,  death  was 
a  terrible  enemy  to  him. 

The  custom  long  remained  in  that  New  England  village  to 
toll  out  the  bell  when  any  one  died,  to  toll  one  stroke  for  each 
year  of  the  age  of  the  deceased.  Sometimes  it  would  toll 
forty  strokes  for  a  man  of  forty,  or  seventy  for  some  grand- 
mother in  the  village.  When  the  bell  would  thus  toll  sixty, 
seventy  or  eighty,  then  he  would  think,  "That  is  a  great  ways 
ofif."  But  sometimes  it  would  be  for  a  child  at  his  age  and 
then  it  would  be  very  solemn,  almost  terrifying,  and  for  some- 
time after  that  he  would  be  afraid  to  sleep  in  a  room  alone. 

Another  of  his  experiences  relates  to  an  excursion  taken 
some  miles  from  home,  with  an  elder  brother.  It  was  his 
first  visit  away  from  home.  It  seemed  to  him  to  be  the  long- 
est visit  of  his  life.  He  was  so  far  away  he  began  to  fear  that 
he  would  never  get  back  again. 

"While  we  were  walking  down  the  street  we  saw  an  old 
man  coming  toward  us,  and  my  brother  said,  'There  is  a  man 
that  will  give  you  a  cent.  He  gives  every  new  boy  that  comes 
into  this  town  a  cent.'  That  was  my  first  visii  to  the  town, 
and  when  the  old  man  got  opposite  to  us  he  looked  around, 
and  my  brother  not  wishing  me  to  lose  the  cent,  and  to  re- 
mind the  old  man  that  I  had  not  received  it,  told  him  that  I 
was  a  new  boy  in  the  town.  The  old  man,  taking  off  my  hat, 
3 


34  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

placed  his  trembling  hand  on  my  head  and  told  me  that  I  had 
a  Father  in  Heaven.     It  was  a  kind,  simple  act,  but  I  feel  the 
impression  of  the  old  man's  hand  upon  my  head  to-day.' 
THE  PRODIGAL  SON. 

Another  shadow  fell  upon  that  home  on  the  mountain  side. 
A  sorrow  more  bitter  than  death  itself.  The  saddest  memo- 
ries of  the  days  of  his  childhood  relate  to  the  running  away 
of  his  elder  brother.  With  a  youth's  ambition  to  make  his 
fortune  in  the  world,  perhaps  tired  of  being  the  eldest  brother 
of  so  large  a  family,  thinking  it  was  time  to  be  doing  for  him- 
self, unmindful  of  the  heart  he  would  so  nearly  break,  a  cow- 
ard and  lacking  in  the  spirit  of  self  sacrifice  \vliich  crowned 
that  mother's  head  with  the  blessings  of  her  children  for  so 
many  years,  that  eldest  son  suddenly  disappeared. 

In  vain,  through  many  years,  they  waited  for  tidings  of  the 
lost  boy.  It  seemed  sometimes  as  if  the  mother's  heart 
would  utterly  break  for  him.  A  living  grief  is  as  a  poisoned 
arrow  in  the  heart.  Sometimes  she  said  it  would  have  eased 
her  heart  to  know  that  he  was  dead.  "It  would  be  better  than 
this.  I  don't  know  but  he  is  lying  sick  in  some  foreign  land, 
with  nobody  to  watch  over  him.  Maybe  he  has  fallen  in  with 
wicked  men  who  will  make  him  like  themselves." 

Often  would  they  sit  in  a  semi-circle  about  the  fire  of  a 
stormy  winter's  night  and  listen  to  the  howling  of  the  gale, 
and  come  closer  to  the  mother,  and  listen  to  the  stories  of 
their  dead  father;  what  he  did,  what  he  said,  how  he  loved 
them ;  then  of  his  kindness  to  a  friend  and  how  he  lost  a  good 
deal  of  money  by  him,  and  so  their  little  home  was  mortgaged 
and  they  were  poor.  But  if  by  chance  any  one  spoke  the  name 
of  the  absent  brother,  a  great  silence  fell  upon  them;  the  tears 
would  come  into  the  eyes  o\  the  mother,  and  then  they  would 
steal  away  to  bed,  whispering  their  "good-nights"  and  walking 
softly  as  they  went,  for  that  name  was  like  a  sword  thrust 
in  the  mother's  heart.  For  a  long  time  they  would  lie  awake 
listening  to  the  roar  of  the  wind  among  the  mountains,  think- 


BOYHOOD  AND  EARLY  LIFE.  35 

ing  that  maybe  he  was  out  in  the  cold  somewhere,  or  worse 
than  that,  perhaps  he  had  gone  to  sea  and  while  they  were 
snug  in  bed  he  might  be  keeping  watch  on  deck  or  climbing 
a  reeling  mast  in  just  such  darkness  and  storm.  During  a 
little  lull  in  the  storm  they  would  hear  the  mother's  voice — 
she  was  sitting  up  to  pray  for  her  lost  boy.  Perhaps,  next 
morning,  she  would  send  them  down  to  the  village,  more  than 
a  mile  away,  to  ask  for  a  letter;  a  letter  from  him,  though  she 
never  said  so.  But  no  letter  ever  came.  "Many  and  many 
a  time  have  I  gone  to  the  window  in  the  hope  that  I  should 
see  him  coming  up  the  garden  walk  to  cheer  our  mother's 
heart,  but  all  was  in  vain — he  didn't  come.  I  do  believe  she 
would  have  gone  all  round  the  world  to  find  him.  When 
Thanksgiving  Day  would  come  she  would  always  put  a  chair 
for  him — but  the  chair  was  always  empty.  The  friends  and 
neighbors  gave  him  up,  but  she  did  not.  She  held  fast  to  the 
hope  that  she  would  see  him  come  back  before  she  died.  Oh, 
how  she  loved  that  boy!  And  so  time  rolled  on.  The  step 
that  was  once  so  firm  became  feeble;  the  hair  that  once  was 
black  as  night  became  silvery  gray.  One  summer  afternoon, 
as  she  sat  in  her  cottage,  her  twin  children  with  her  (for  the 
rest  of  us  had  gone  out  into  the  world  to  fight  the  battle  of 
life),  a  tall,  swarthy  man,  with  heavy  black  beard,  was  seen 
coming  in  the  gate.  He  came  up  under  the  porch,  and,  the 
door  being  open,  he  stopped  and  looked  in,  with  an  eager, 
anxious  face,  as  if  he  were  afraid  he  might  not  find  the  one 
he  was  seeking,  though  he  had  stopped  at  the  church-yard  on 
his  way  through  the  village  to  see  whether  there  were  two 
graves,  instead  of  one,  where  his  father  had  been  laid  so  many 
years  before.  Surely  his  mother  was  not  dead,  but  was  she 
still  at  the  old  home? 

Mother  came  to  the  door  to  bid  the  stranger  come  in. 
The  eyes  that  had  watched  so  long  for  his  coming  did  not 
know  him  now.  But  the  stranger  did  not  speak  nor  move. 
As  he  stood  in  the  presence  of  the  mother  whose  heart  he 


36  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

had  broken,  great  tears  began  to  roll  down  his  cheeks.  But 
when  she  saw  the  big  tears  starting  from  his  eyes  she  sprang 
to  him,  'It  is  my  boy,  my  dear,  dear  boy.'  But  there  the  boy 
stood,  and  said:  'Mother  I  will  never  cross  the  threshold  until 
you  say  you  forgive  me.' 

"Do  you  think  he  had  to  stay  there  long?  No,  no,  her 
arms  were  around  his  neck  and  she  was  weeping  upon  his 
shoulder.  She  forgave  him  because  he  asked  it  and  because 
she  loved  him.  The  dead  was  alive,  the  lost  was  found.  The 
tears  were  wiped  away  from  that  mother's  eyes  and  happiness 
was  in  her  heart.  And  that  is  just  the  way  God  forgives  all 
the  prodigal  sons  who  come  back  to  him.  What  joy  on 
earth  can  equal  the  joy  of  heaven  when  the  prodigal  comes 
home?  This  night  your  Father  wants  you,  dear  son,  come 
to  Him.  Confess  your  sin  and  He  will  have  mercy  upon  you 
and  forgive  you.  May  heaven's  blessing  rest  upon  every  soul 
here,  is  my  prayer.     Let  us  pray." 

Whoever  that  has  heard  Mr.  Moody  preach  this  famous 
sermon  on  the  prodigal  son  can  possibly  forget  the  power 
and  pathos  of  this  final  appeal?  Audiences  were  melted  to 
tears,  and  scores,  sometimes  hundreds,  would  respond  to  his 
earnest  entreaties  for  them  to  return  to  the  Father's  house,  as 
he  pictured  the  desolation  in  that  home  on  the  hillside,  the 
mother's  anxious  waiting,  her  days  of  watching,  and  her 
nights  of  prayer. 

Under  these  heavier  shadows  life  in  that  cottage  at  North- 
field  moved  on  as  in  many  another  home  of  widowhood.  But 
Pastor  Everett  was  true  to  his  promises  and  often  looked  in 
upon  them,  cheering  their  hearts  with  pleasant  words;  en- 
couraging the  mother  to  keep  on  praying — the  rewards  for 
all  her  labors  of  love  would  not  fail.  He  would  sometimes 
help  to  settle  quarrels  among  the  boys,  occasionally  give  the 
little  fellows  a  bright  piece  of  silver  all  around  to  make  his 
earnest  advice  the  more  palatable.  As  Dwight  grew  up  he 
became  the  special  cause  of  great  anxiety  to  his  mother,  and 


BOYHOOD  AND  EARLY  LIFE.  37 

for  awhile  the  minister  took  him  into  his  family  to  do  the 
chores  and  go  to  school.  But  the  boy  needed  severer  re- 
straint than  even  he  could  exercise.  Often  his  patience  was 
sorely  tried  and  he  was  at  his  wits'  end  what  to  do  with  the 
boy,  being  often  obliged  to  laugh  at  his  pranks  even  when  he 
felt  it  his  duty  to  be  the  most  stern.  The  task  was  beyond 
his  wisdom  and  authority,  and  he  was  glad  to  send  him  back 
to  his  mother.  And  yet  the  boy  was  not  a  mean  boy,  nor 
vicious,  but  only  full  of  life  and  mischief,  too  lazy  to  work,  too 
idle  to  study.  He  was  a  stout,  hearty,  self-reliant,  wilful  boy 
— a  great  favorite  with  his  playmates  and  a  leader  in  all  their 
pastimes  and  frolics.  He  went  to  school  because  his  mother 
insisted  on  it,  not  because  he  liked  it.  So  miserably  did  he 
waste  his  time  that  at  sixteen  he  had  not  even  creditably  mas- 
tered the  three  R's — "readin',  ritin'  and  rithmetic." 

He  was  not  a  bad  boy,  but  he  was  like  a  splendid  wild  horse 
of  the  plains  that  has  never  felt  the  lasso,  the  leader  of  the 
herd.  He  never  lost  his  love  for  the  mountains  and  the  open 
air  He  always  entered  heartily  into  the  recreations,  songs, 
stories  and  jokes  of  the  young  men  gathered  about  him.  Like 
all  really  great  men  he  kept  the  dew  of  his  youth  upon  him. 
As  Drummond  once  said  of  him,  "You  will  find  a  deal  of  the 
boy  in  Moody."  He  would  sometimes  kick  the  traces  in 
later  life,  and  give  hundreds  of  boys  and  girls  a  chance  to 
play  truant  as  he  used  to  do,  as  the  following  incident  will 
show : 

OUT  OF  SCHO'OL  FOR  A  FROLIC. 

One  of  Mr.  Moody's  first  thoughts  upon  returning  from  his 
labors  throughout  the  country  was  for  the  schools  at  North- 
field.  He  found  a  reward  for  his  efforts  in  the  welcome 
accorded  him  by  the  students.  In  the  old  days  he  was  often 
seen  driving  through  the  grounds  at  Mt.  Hermon,  four  miles 
distant  from  his  home,  before  six  o'clock  in  the  morning. 
Bad  weather  never  kept  him  indoors.  Frequently  he  ap- 
peared at  chapel  exercises  at  l\Iount  Hermon  or  at  the  semi- 


38  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

nary  with  his  big  rubber  l^oots  split  down  the  back  because 
of  the  unusual  size  of  his  legs. 

Many  times  the  visits  of  the  founder  of  the  schools  upset 
the  routine  of  study,  for  he  outvoted  the  joint  faculties  of 
both  institutions  whenever  it  suited  him.  Such  was  the  case 
one  frosty  October  morning  when  he  proposed  a  nutting  ex- 
cursion to  the  boys.  Classes  were  dismissed,  and  before 
the  faculty  had  fully  taken  in  the  situation,  Mr.  Moody  was 
driving  toward  the  seminary  up  the  valley  at  the  top  of  his 
horse's  speed.  There  also  he  put  an  end  to  study,  and  by  ten 
o'clock  700  students  were  climbing  the  mountain.  Every 
available  vehicle  was  pressed  into  service  for  carrying  provis- 
ion for  the  outing  party,  and  at  night  came  back  laden  with 
nuts.  Shouts  and  laughter  rang  through  the  woods  until 
evening,  when  the  young  people  returned  singing  a  hundred 
songs  dear  to  Northfield  by  their  association. 

Dwight  L.  Moody's  last  term  of  school  was  in  the  winter  of 
his  seventeenth  year — it  was  to  be  his  last  at  home.  He  was 
now  the  ringleader  of  the  boys  in  all  their  devices  to  annoy 
the  teacher,  who,  in  despair  of  doing  anything  with  him, 
now  threatened  to  turn  the  boy  from  school.  This  was  a 
great  grief  to  his  mother.  She  told  him  how  much  ashamed 
she  should  be  to  have  one  of  her  boys  turned  out  of  school, 
directed  him  to  go  to  the  teacher  and  ask  forgiveness  for  his 
bad  conduct  and  try  to  be  some  little  credit  to  his  mother. 
There  were  few  things  he  would  not  do  for  his  mother.  And 
now  at  her  urgent  entreaty  he  would  try  even  to  do  a  little 
studying.  So  he  returned  to  the  school  to  beg  his  teacher's 
pardon  and  to  settle  down  for  the  first  time  in  his  life  lo  apply 
himself  faithfully  to  his  books.  But  it  was  too  late  for  him 
to  become  even  a  moderate  scholar  in  the  simpler  branches 
of  a  village  education. 

The  time  had  come  when  he  must  "make  a  break."  The 
place  was  too  strait  for  him.  He  must  go  out  to  face  the 
world  and  make  the  best  of  it.     At  the  age  of  seventeen  this 


BOYHOOD  AND  EARLY  LIFE.  39 

country  lad,  with  no  other  piety  in  him  apparently  than  the 
love  of  his  mother,  and  a  determination  to  be  an  honest  and 
successful  man,  rude  in  manners  and  speech,  shabby  in  dress, 
with  his  mother's  blessing  upon  him  as  a  benediction,  with 
few  dollars  in  his  pocket,  but  with  muscles  like  steel  and  the 
courage  of  a  young  lion,  Dwight  L.  Moody  set  out  from 
Northfield  to  seek  his  fortune  in  Boston. 


Goes  Out  Into  the  World. 

'T  THE  age  of  seventeen  young  Moody,  with  a  very 
small  stock  in  trade  arrived  in  Boston,  ambitious 
of  a  business  career.  He  had  lots  of  energy,  but 
it  sadly  needed  educating,  directing,  controlling. 
There  was  evidently  "something  in  him"  but  that 
"something"  seemed  to  be  anything  else  rather  than  a  preach- 
er of  the  gospel.  During  the  visit  of  his  Uncle  Samuel  Hol- 
ton  to  Northfield  in  the  winter,  Dwight  had  asked  him  for  a 
place  in  his  boot  and  shoe  store  in  Boston;  but  learning  what 
a  wild  young  colt  he  was,  the  request  had  been  refused.  It 
seemed  almost  certain  that  going  into  the  city  would  be  the 
ruin  of  such  a  wilful  and  wayward  boy.  But  he  felt  perfectly 
well  able  to  take  care  of  himself.  He  could  fight  his  own  way 
in  the  world;  so  that  at  last  the  mother  had  given  her  reluc- 
tant consent  and  her  blessing  with  it,  and  Dwight  L.  Moody 
found  himself  in  Boston.  He  was  made  welcome  at  the 
home  of  his  mother's  younger  brother,  Lemuel,  and  began 
beating  about  the  city  for  a  situation.  He  surprised  his 
Uncle  Samuel  by  an  early  call  on  him  at  his  store,  but  only 
to  let  him  know  that  he  was  in  town.  He  wouldn't  ask  for  a 
situation,  not  he!  He  would  show  his  uncle  he  could  get  on 
very  well  alone. 

But  the  rude,  awkward,  country  lad,  without  recommenda- 
tions, dressed  in  an  ill-fitting,  not  to  say  shabby,  suit  of 
clothes,  found  no  door  opening  up  to  him.  At  the  end  of  a 
week  he  was  disgusted,  mad;  but  not  discouraged.  He  tried 
as  earnestly  at  Lowell;  found  nothing.  He  was  tempted  to 
start  afoot  to  New  York — his  money  was  all  gone — and  he 
had  nothing  to  sell. 

"Have  you  asked  your  Uncle  Samuel  to  help  you  to  a  situa- 
tion?" inquired  Mr.  Lemuel  Holton  one  evening. 


GOES  OUT  INTO  THE  WORLD.  41 

"No,"  said  Dwight,  "he  knows  I  am  looking  for  a  place 
and  he  may  help  me  or  not  just  as  he  pleases." 

But  the  proud,  headstrong  boy  was  beginning  to  tremble. 
Nobody  in  Boston  cared  for  him  anymore  than  for  a  log  on 
the  river  floating  to  and  fro  with  the  tide  and  current.  Tak- 
ing wise  advantage  of  his  weakness,  his  uncle  gave  him  some 
good  advice.  Modesty  would  win  its  way  to  favor  far  quick- 
er than  rude  self  assertion.  Courtesy,  a  word  he  scarcely 
knew  the  meaning  of,  certainly  not  by  experience,  was  more 
needful  than  courage.  It  would  be  better  for  him  now  to 
call  on  his  Uncle  Samuel,  show  himself  willing  to  be  governed 
by  one  older  and  wiser  than  himself,  and  content  to  begin 
to  yield  his  obstinate  will.     The  colt  was  bitted  at  last. 

His  Uncle  Samuel  received  him  kindly,  promised  him  a 
place  in  the  store  on  three  simple  conditions:  He  was  to 
choose  the  boarding  place  for  him,  the  boy  was  not  to  be  out 
on  the  streets  at  night,  he  was  to  attend  regularly  the  Mount 
Vernon  Congregational  Church  and  Sunday  school.  To 
these  Dwight  agreed,  and  then  there  was  another  very  com- 
prehensive condition  added,  Dwight  was  to  be  governed  by 
the  judgment  of  his  uncle  in  all  matters  generally;  in  other 
words  he  must  begin  to  recognize,  what  was  exceedingly  irk- 
some to  him,  the  duty  of  rendering  obedience  to  his  super- 
iors. 

HIS  FIRST  START  IN  BUSINESS. 

At  last  he  had  a  footing  in  the  world  of  trade.  His  salary 
to  be  sure  was  very  small.  He  must  begin  at  the  bottom,  but 
he  might  soon  learn  to  climb.  A  home  was  found  for  him 
in  a  humble  Christian  family  living  in  modest  style;  but  with- 
al, most  sensible  people. 

His  pride  and  his  poverty  remained  fast  company  for  many 
a  day,  and  at  times  he  was  quite  miserable  among  the  well- 
bred,  well-dressed  people  he  met.  But  he  held  fast  to  his  pur- 
pose that  he  would  succeed  in  conquering  a  place  for  himself 
in  business.     He  was  quick,  and  shrewd,  in  business,  a  sharp 


42  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

observer  of  human  nature;  ashamed  to  confess  his  ignor- 
ance and  often  guessing  at  prices  and  quaUties.  Yet  within 
three  months'  time  he  was  selhng  more  boots  and  shoes  than 
any  other  man  in  the  store.  It  is  said  that  he  went  about  his 
duties  in  the  store  in  much  the  same  vigorous  way  in  which 
he  would  have  swung  a  scythe  in  a  field  of  tangled  clover,  or 
have  broken  a  yoke  of  wild  steers.  He  seemed  to  think  he 
must  be  all  the  time  fighting  his  way  in  the  world.  And  long 
after  he  became  famous  as  a  preacher  it  was  said  that  he 
seemed  to  enjoy  the  service  of  the  Lord  all  the  more,  because 
it  gave  him  at  the  same  time  such  a  good  chance  to  fight  the 
devil. 

As  the  books  to  which  he  had  access  during  his  restless 
years  in  Northfield  were  few,  he  had  had  the  more  time  to 
think.  The  original  force  of  his  mind  had  not  been  smoth- 
ered under  a  mass  of  ill-adjusted  reading.  He  had  done  his 
own  thinking  and  a  good  deal  of  it. 

An  incident  had  occurred  in  his  early  manhood  which  had 
made  a  very  deep  impression  on  his  mind.  The  truth  long 
remained  in  his  heart,  waiting  to  be  quickened  into  life  by  the 
power  of  the  Spirit  of  God.  The  incident  is  found  thus  vividly 
narrated  in  one  of  those  sketches  from  life  by  which  he  sought 
to  arouse  and  warn  the  careless  and  indifferent: 

"Before  I  left  the  farm,"  he  said,  "I  was  talking  one  day  to 
a  man  who  was  working  there,  and  who  was  weeping.  I  said 
to  him:  'What  is  the  trouble?'  And  he  told  me  a  very  strange 
story — strange  to  me  then,  for  I  was  not  at  that  time  a  Chris- 
tian. He  said  that  his  mother  was  a  Christian  when  he  left 
home  to  seek  his  fortune.  When  he  was  about  starting,  his 
mother  took  him  by  the  hand  and  spoke  these  parting  words: 
'My  son,  seek  ye  first  the  kingdom  of  God  and  his  righteous- 
ness, and  all  these  things  shall  be  added  unto  you.'  'This,' 
said  he,  'was  my  mother's  favorite  text.'  When  he  got  into 
the  town  to  which  he  was  going,  he  had  to  spend  the  Sabbath 
there.     He  went  to  a  little  church,  and  the  minister  preached 


GOES  OUT  INTO  THE  WORLD.  43 

from  the  text,  'Seek  ye  first  the  kingdom  of  God;'  and  he 
thought  the  text  and  sermon  were  meant  for  him.  He  want- 
ed to  get  rich;  and  when  he  was  settled  in  hfe  he  would  seek 
the  kingdom  of  Ciod.  He  went  on,  and  the  next  Sabbath  he 
was  in  another  village.  It  was  not  long  before  he  heard  an- 
other minister  preach  from  the  same  text,  "Seek  ye  first  the 
kingdom  of  God.'  He  thought  some  one  must  have  been 
speaking  to  the  minister  about  him;  for  the  minister  just  pic- 
tured him  out.  But  he  said,  when  he  got  settled  in  life,  and 
had  control  of  his  time,  and  was  his  own  master,  he  would 
then  seek  the  kingdom  of  God. 

Some  time  after  he  was  at  another  village,  and  here  went 
to  church  again;  and  he  had  not  been  going  a  great  while 
when  he  heard  the  third  minister  preach  from  the  same  text, 
'Seek  ye  the  kingdom  of  God  and  his  righteousness,  and  all 
these  things  shall  be  added  unto  you.'  He  said  it  went  right 
down  into  his  soul;  but  he  calmly  and  deliberately  made  up  his 
mind  that  he  would  not  become  a  Christian  until  he  had  got 
settled  in  life,and  owned  his  farm.  This  man  said,  'Now  1 
am  what  the  world  calls  rich.  I  go  to  church  every  Sunday; 
but  I  have  never  heard  a  sermon,  from  that  day  to  this,  which 
has  ever  made  any  impression  on  my  heart.  My  heart  is  as 
hard  as  stone.'  As  he  said  that,  tears  trickled  down  his 
cheeks.  I  was  a  young  man.  and  did  not  know  what  it  meant. 
When  I  became  converted  I  thought  I  would  see  this  man 
when  I  should  go  back  home,  and  preach  Christ  to  him.  When 
I  went  back  home  I  said  to  my  widowed  mother,  naming  the 
man,  'Is  he  still  living  in  the  same  place?'  My  mother  said, 
'He  is  gone  mad,  and  has  been  taken  away  to  the  insane 
asyllun;  and  to  every  one  that  goes  to  see  him  he  points  his 
finger  and  says.  'Seek  ye  first  the  kingdom  of  God?'  I 
thought  I  should  like  to  see  him;  but  he  was  so  far  gone  it 
would  do  no  good.  The  next  time  I  went  home  he  was  at 
his  home,  idiotic.  I  went  to  see  him.  When  I  went  in,  I 
said,  'Do  you  know  nie?'     He  pointed  his  finger  at  me  and 


44  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

said,  'Young  man,  seek  ye  first  the  kingdom  of  God.*  God 
had  driven  that  text  into  his  mind  but  his  reason  was  gone. 
Some  years  ago,  when  I  visited  my  father's  grave,  I  noticed 
a  new  stone  had  been  put  up.  I  stopped,  and  found  it  was 
my  friend's.  That  autumn  wind  seemed  whispering  that 
text,  'Seek  ye  first  the  kingdom  of  God,'  " 

And  now  we  find  this  energetic  and  tireless  youth  settUng 
into  the  routine  of  business  in  Boston  and  a  regular  atten- 
dant at  the  Mount  Vernon  Church,  whose  pastor  was  one  of 
the  most  eloquent  and  evangelical  ministers  this  country  has 
produced.  He  was  a  prince  among  preachers.  He  was  a  mag- 
nificent man — physically,  mentally  and  spiritually — just  the 
sort  of  a  man  to  captivate  young  Moody;  and  he,  having 
found  a  man  whom  he  believed  to  be  wiser  and  stronger  than 
himself,  sat  reverently  at  his  feet  and  learned  of  him. 
MOODY  IN  SUNDAY  SCHOOL. 

At  this  critical  period  of  his  youth  Dwight  L.  Moody  was 
fortunate  to  have  been  placed  in  the  class  of  Mr.  Edward 
Kimball,  a  very  earnest  and  faithful  teacher,  and  one  inter- 
ested in  the  personal  salvation  of  the  scholars  in  his  class. 
With  Mr.  Kimball  we  have  frequently  conversed  and  heard 
over  and  over  again  the  incidents  concerning  the  early  reli- 
gious life  of  Dwight  L.  Moody.  A  more  unpromising  lad  he 
had  never  had  in  his  class.  He  was  rude,  uncouth,  untaught. 
On  his  appearance  in  the  class  when  he  was  given  a  Bible  he 
began  looking  for  one  of  the  epistles  in  Genesis,  to  the  great 
amusement  of  the  other  scholars.  Mr.  Kimball  sought  to 
cover  his  confusion  by  exchanging  Bibles  with  him,  and 
Moody  kept  his  thumb  in  the  place  for  fear  of  losing  it.  For 
a  time  It  was  with  great  weariness  and  impatience  that  he 
attended  the  school,  and  Mr.  Kimball  felt  as  if  he  were  not 
getting  hold  of  the  boy — was  even  failing  to  interest  him. 
But  one  Sunday,  when  the  lesson  was  about  Moses,  he  had 
listened  with  something  of  eagerness  and  at  length  broke  out 
with  the  first  remark  he  had  ventured  to  make,  that  "Moses 


GOES  OUT  INTO  THE  WORLD.  45 

was  what  you  would  call  a  pretty  smart  sort  of  a  man,  wasn't 
he?"  Glad  to  hear  a  word  from  him  at  last,  even  if  it  did 
savor  a  little  of  country  smartness,  Mr.  Kimball  enlarged  on 
the  question,  greatly  to  Moody's  satisfaction.  He  began  to 
warm  up  to  his  teacher,  but  held  an  increasing  dislike  for  the 
men  and  women  who  were  so  rich,  and  proper,  and  pious  that 
they  seemed  to  live  in  a  different  world  from  his.  And  against 
the  young  men  who  wore  good  clothes  and  spent  a  good  deal 
of  money,  while  he  had  scarcely  two  dimes  to  rub  against 
one  another,  he  became  very  bitter.  Therefore  he  felt  him- 
self the  victim  of  ill-fortune  and  revenged  himself  savagely  in 
denouncing  their  pride  and  did  not  recognize  the  fact  that  in 
his  bitter  speech  he  was  the  proudest  of  them  all. 

This  new  interest  on  the  part  of  the  lad  induced  his  earnest 
teacher  to  visit  him  at  the  store.  It  was  a  new  experience  to 
have  anyone  take  so  much  interest  in  him,  so  that  when  Mr. 
Kimball  laid  his  hand  upon  his  shoulder  and  spoke  kindly  to 
him,  it  softened  his  nature  a  little.  When  the  direct  question 
was  tenderly  asked  a  Httle  later,  "Will  you  not  give  your  heart 
to  Jesus?"  the  inquiry  pierced  to  the  marrow  of  his  soul. 

THAT  WAS  THE  TURNING  POINT 
in  Dwight  L.  Moody's  life.  He  sought  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
with  his  whole  heart,  resolved  henceforth  to  consecrate  him- 
self to  the  service  of  his  God.  He  had  found  one  whom  he 
could  call  Lord  and  Master.  Life  was  a  new  revelation  to 
him.  "The  morning  I  was  converted,"  he  has  said,  "I  went 
out-doors  and  I  fell  in  love  with  the  bright  sun  shining  over 
the  earth.  I  never  loved  the  sun  before.  And  when  I  heard 
the  birds  singing  their  sweet  songs,  I  fell  in  love  with  the 
birds.  Like  the  Scotch  lassie  who  stood  on  the  hills  of  her 
native  land  breathing  the  sweet  air,  and  when  asked  why  she 
did  it,  said,  T  love  the  Scotch  air.'  If  the  church  were  filled 
with  love  it  could  do  so  much  more." 

In  another  bit  of  biography  given  as  an  experience  to  his 
English  hearers  Mr.  Moody  referred  to  the  momentous  point 


46  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

of  his  conversion,  and  told  the  story  of  how  he  was  permitted 
many  years  afterward  to  lead  to  the  Savior  a  son  of  his  teach- 
er. "When  I  was  in  Boston,"  said  he,  "I  used  to  attend  a 
Sunday  school  class,  and  one  day  I  recollect  a  Sabbath  school 
teacher  came  round  behind  the  counter  of  the  shop  I  used  to 
work  in,  and  put  his  hand  on  my  shoulder,  and  talked  to  me 
about  Christ  and  my  soul.  I  had  not  felt  I  had  a  soul  till  then. 
I  said:  'This  is  a  very  strange  thing.  Here  is  a  man  who 
never  saw  me  until  within  a  few  days,  and  he  is  weeping  over 
my  sins,  and  I  never  shed  a  tear  about  them.'  But  I  under- 
stand it  now,  and  know  what  it  is  to  have  a  passion  for  men's 
souls  and  weep  over  their  sins.  I  don't  remember  what  he 
said  but  I  can  feel  the  power  of  that  young  man's  hand  on 
my  shoulder  to-night.  Young  Christian  men,  go  and  lay 
your  hand  on  your  comrade's  shoulder,  and  point  him  to  Jesus 
to-night.  Well,  he  got  me  up  to  the  school,  and  it  was  not 
long  before  I  was  brought  into  the  kingdom  of  God.  I  went 
thousands  of  miles  away  after  that,  but  I  often  thought  I 
should  like  to  see  that  man  again.  Time  rolled  on,  and  at 
length  I  was  at  Boston  again;  and  I  recollect,  one  night  when 
I  was  preaching  there,  a  fine,  noble  young  man  came  up  the 
aisle  and  said:  T  should  like  to  speak  with  you,  Mr.  Aloody. 
I  have  often  heard  my  father  talk  about  you.'  'Who  is  your 
father?'  I  asked.  'Edward  Kimball,'  was  the  reply.  'What?' 
said  I,  'my  old  Sunday  school  teacher?'  I  asked  him  his 
name,  and  he  said  it  was  Henry,  and  that  he  was  seventeen 
years  of  age.  I  tried  to  put  my  hand  on  his  shoulder  just 
where  his  father  did  on  my  shoulder,  and  I  said  to  him:  'You 
are  just  as  old  as  I  was  when  your  father  put  his  hand  on  mv 
shoulder.  Are  you  a  Christian,  Henry?'  'No,  sir.'  he  said; 
and  as  I  talked  to  him  about  his  soul,  with  my  hand  on  his 
shoulder,  the  tears  began  to  trickle  down.  'Come,'  said  I, 
'I  will  show  you  how  you  can  be  saved'  and  I  took  him  into 
a  pew  and  quoted  promise  after  promise  to  him.  And  I  went 
on  praying  with  him,  but  as  he  did  not  get  light,  I  read  to  him 


GOES  OUT  INTO  THE  WORLD.  47 

the  fifty-third  chapter  of  Isaiah:  "All  we,  like  sheep,  have 
gone  astray."  Do  you  believe  that,  Henry?'  'Yes,  sir,  I 
know  that's  true.'  '  "We  have  turned  every  one  to  his  own 
way."  Is  that  true?'  'Yes,  sir,  that's  true,  and  that's  what 
troubles  me;  I  hke  my  own  way.'  'But  there  is  another  sen- 
tence yet,  Henry:  "The  Lord  hath  laid  on  him  the  iniquity  of 
us  all?"  Do  you  believe  that  Henry?'  'No,  I  do  not,  sir.' 
'Now,'  I  said,  'why  should  you  take  a  verse  of  God's  word 
and  cut  it  in  two,  and  believe  one  part  and  not  another?  Here 
are  two  things  against  you  and  you  believe  them ;  and  here  is 
one  thing  in  your  favor,  but  you  won't  believe  that.  What 
authority  have  you  for  serving  God's  word  in  that  way?' 
'Well,'  he  said,  'Mr.  Moody,  if  I  believed  that  I  should  be 
saved.'  'I  know  you  would'  I  replied,  and  that's  exactly 
what  I  want  you  to  do.  But  you  take  the  bitter,  and  won't 
have  the  sweet  with  it.'  So  I  held  him  to  that  little  word 
hath — 'He  hath  laid  on  Him  the  iniquity  of  us  all.'  " 

Mr.  Moody  received  his  promise  that  he  would  give  his 
heart  to  Christ,  and  soon  after  heard  from  the  father  that  his 
son  had  found  peace  in  believing. 

As  a  young  Christian  his  zeal  was  strong,  but  his  impulses 
were  as  ill-trained  and  ill-directed  as  ever.  His  mind  was 
untutored  in  the  scriptures,  his  command  of  language  very 
limited,  his  use  of  it  was  wretched.  Mr.  Kimball  has  stated, 
"I  can  truly  say,  and  in  saying  it  I  magnify  the  infinite  grace 
of  God  as  bestowed  upon  him.  that  I  have  seen  few  persons 
whose  minds  were  spiritually  darker  than  was  his  when  he 
came  into  mv  Sundav  school  class,  and  I  think  that  the  com- 
mittee of  the  Mount  A'ernon  Church  seldom  met  an  applicant 
for  membership  more  unlikely  to  become  a  Christian  of  clear 
and  decided  views  of  gospel  truth,  still  less  to  fill  any  extended 
sphere  of  public  usefulness."  ]Mr.  Kimball  was  also  a  mem- 
ber of  the  examining  committee  before  which  Mr.  Moody 
appeared,  but  even  with  the  teacher  whom  he  loved  to  aid 
him,  he  could  not  state  what  Christ  had  done  for  him.     The 


48  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

chief  question  put  to  him  was  this:  "Mr.  Moody,  what  has 
Christ  done  for  us  all — for  you — which  entitles  Him  to  our 
love?"  The  answer,  the  longest  one  he  gave  in  his  examina- 
tion, was  this:  "I  do  not  know.  I  think  Christ  has  done  a 
good  deal  for  us,  but  I  do  not  think  of  anything  particular  as 
I  know  of." 

Under  these  circumstances  the  committee  declined  to 
recommend  him  for  admission  but  appointed  two  of  their 
number  to  watch  over  him  with  kindness  and  teach  him  the 
way  of  God  more  perfectly.  Six  months  later.  May  4th,  1856, 
he  was  welcomed  into  the  church  fellowship. 

Sometime  after  this,  Mr.  Moody  expressed  his  gratitude  to 
one  of  the  officers  of  the  church  for  the  course  pursued,  and 
said  his  conviction  was  that  its  influence  was  favorable  to  his 
growth  in  grace. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Kirk  was  in  Chicago  a  few  years  later  attend- 
ing a  meeting  of  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for 
Foreign  Missions  and  was  entertained  by,  and  preached  for, 
his  former  parishioner.  On  his  return  he  called  upon  ]\Ir. 
Holton,  and  said,  "I  told  our  people  last  night  that  we  ought 
to  be  ashamed  of  ourselves.  There  is  that  young  Moody, 
who  we  thought  did  not  know  enough  to  be  in  our  church 
and  Sunday  school,  exerting  a  greater  influence  for  Christ 
than  any  other  man  in  the  great  north-west." 

Mr.  Moody  never  seemed  to  forget  anything,  and  an  inci- 
dent is  related  in  which  he  took  a  good-natured  revenge  upon 
one  of  those  deacons  of  the  Mount  Vernon  Church. 

It  was  at  one  of  his  great  meetings  in  Exeter  Hall,  London, 
where  he  espied  his  old  friend  way  back  vinder  the  gallery. 
He  had  dropped  in  out  of  curiosity  to  see  what  the  man  could 
do,  taking  a  scat  where  he  felt  sure  that  Moody  would  not  see 
him.     But  he  spied  him  out  just  before  closing  and  called  out: 

"I  see  in  the  house  an  eminent  Christian  gentleman  from 
Boston.  Deacon  Palmer,  come  right  forward  to  the  plat- 
form; the  people  want  to  hear  from  you." 


GOES  OUT  INTO  THE  WORLD.  49 

In  vain  Deacon  Palmer  shook  his  head.  Moody  insisted 
and  he  was  compelled  to  face  the  audience.  He  began  by 
saying  that  he  had  known  Mr.  Moody,  in  fact,  was  a  member 
of  the  same  church  in  early  life,  and  was  very  glad  of  his  great 
success  in  the  Lord's  service;  when  Mr.  Moody  suddenly 
broke  out:  "Yes,  Deacon,  and  you  kept  me  out  of  that  church 
for  six  months,  because  you  thought  I  did  not  know 
enough  to  join  it." 

The  effect  of  such  a  remark  can  be  imagined  but  not  de- 
scribed. Roars  of  laughter  filled  the  hall,  but  the  deacon  was 
too  shrewd  to  be  easily  silenced,  and  at  last  said  that  the 
audience  must  agree  with  him  that  it  was  a  great  privilege  to 
have  received  Mr.  Moody  into  the  church  at  all,  even  after 
such  a  long  delay. 

The  zeal  of  the  young  convert  soon  began  to  make  things 
uncomfortable  in  the  prayer  meetings  of  the  Mount  Vernon 
Church,  He  began  to  speak  in  the  meetings,  adding  exhor- 
tations which  were  by  no  means  agreeable  to  the  elegant  be- 
lievers about  him;  indeed,  they  sometimes  were  received  with 
evident  marks  of  disfavor.  One  good  old  lady  even  ven- 
tured to  call  on  his  Uncle  Samuel  and  request  him  to  advise 
the  young  zealot  to  hold  his  peace  until  he  should  be  more 
able  to  edify  the  meetings.  But  Mr.  Holton  replied  that  he 
was  glad  that  Dwight  had  courage  to  confess  his  Savior  in 
such  presence  and  declined  to  put  a  straw  in  his  way.  The 
young  man  had  evidently  set  his  face  like  a  flint  in  the  direc- 
tion of  heaven  and  duty,  and  so  vigorously  did  he  resist  the 
devil  and  so  hopefully  struggle  ahead,  that  at  last  even  his 
aunt,  Mrs.  Holton,  to  whom  he  opened  his  heart,  was  con- 
strained to  believe  that  he  was  one  of  the  elect. 

His  zeal  flamed  up  rapidly.  He  wanted  to  speak  or  pray 
in  every  meeting.  Even  Dr.  Kirk  got  out  of  patience  with 
him.  Instead  of  seeking  to  utilize  the  energies  of  this  young 
steam  engine  they  sought  to  put  out  the  fires.  Nobody 
seemed  in  any  great  hurry  about  the  salvation  of  sinners. 
4 


50  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

God's  processes  of  grace  were  supposed  to  be  slow  and  grad- 
ual. "The  kingdom  of  heaven  sufifereth  violence"  and  young 
Moody  had  gone  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven  with  a  rush,  and 
he  was  impatient  at  the  slow  pace  of  his  neighbors.  He 
wanted  to  lay  hold  of  "the  powers  of  the  world  to  come."  He 
wanted  to  hurry  on  the  millennium. 

For  two  years  he  endured  like  a  caged  lion  the  restraints 
which  the  pressure  of  society  put  upon  him.  There  seemed 
to  be  no  room  for  him  anywhere,  and  having  mastered  the 
details  of  his  business  he  boldly  started  westward,  seeking  for 
fortune  and  for  freedom. 


w 


Early  Career  in  Chicago. 

ITH  every  nerve  of  his  body  quivering  with  en- 
ergy and  stinging  him  into  restlessness,  with 
growing  pains  shooting  through  heart  and 
mind  as  well,  young  Moody  full  of  ambition  and 
zeal  in  September,  1856,  struck  out  for  Chicago. 
He  would  at  least  have  a  chance  to  breathe  and  grow  and 
find  there  plenty  of  work  to  do  in  his  own  fashion.  A  grow- 
ing country  lad  of  nineteen,  with  clothes  none  too  well  fitting, 
who  had  taken  on  very  little  of  the  Boston  poHsh,  certainly 
must  have  presented  a  rough  and  unfinished  appearance  as  he 
presented  his  letters  of  recommendation  to  Mr.  Wiswall,  a 
boot  and  shoe  merchant  located  on  Lake  street.  Chicago  is 
a  very  poor  place  for  boy  or  man  who  is  not  able  to  keep  up 
with  the  procession,  but  she  has  plenty  of  cheers  for  the  one 
who  can  elbow  his  way  to  the  front.  It  is  generally  a  fair 
field  and  no  favor.  Young  Moody's  hale  and  hearty  manner, 
good  nature  and  Yankee  wit  soon  made  him  very  popular 
with  the  rougher  class  of  customers,  and  he  rapidly  won 
his  way  as  a  salesman  into  the  more  favorable  consideration 
of  his  employer.  Mr.  Wiswall  said  of  him,  "His  ambition 
made  him  anxious  to  lay  up  money.  His  personal  habits 
were  exact  and  economical.  As  a  salesman  he  was  just  the 
same  zealous  and  tireless  worker  that  he  afterwards  became 
in  religion." 

It  was  the  fashion  in  those  early  days  for  some  of  the 
younger  salesmen  to  sleep  in  the  store.  It  had  a  double  ad- 
vantage; it  gave  them  free  lodgings  and  saved  the  expense 
of  a  watchman.  Those  were  exciting  times  in  the  political 
world,  and  Moody  had  three  very  decided  traits  of  character 
which  made  things  lively  in  an  amateur  debating  society  that 
held  its  meetings  in  the  store  with  shoe  boxes  for  audience. 


52  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

He  was  a  violent  abolitionist,  an  ardent  calvinist,  and  from 
early  training  a  puritan,  hence  the  "Irrepressible  conflict" 
was  always  "on"  in  the  field  of  politics,  theology  and  morals. 
All  his  energy,  however,  did  not  evaporate  in  mere  talk.  His 
zeal  for  the  Master,  his  desire  to  be  doing  something,  was 
urging  him  as  fiercely  as  ever.  He  presented  his  letter  to  the 
Plymouth  Congregational  Church  and  at  once  set  himself  to 
work  as  a  home  missionary.  The  art  of  setting  one's-self  to 
work  is  almost  a  lost  art.  It  seems  to  have  been  smothered 
under  the  modern  idea  that  all  the  Lord's  work  must  be  done 
by  committees,  decently  and  in  good  order.  But  Moody 
must  be  up  and  doing.  Do  what?  Anything  he  could  find 
to  do.  The  first  thing  he  did  was  to  hire  four  pews  in  the 
church,  paying  for  them,  too,  out  of  his  moderate  salary;  and 
the  next  thing  was  to  keep  them  full  of  young  men  every  Sab- 
bath. He  was  a  stranger  to  the  later  text  books  on  "Reli- 
gion made  Easy."  He  believed  in  work,  hard  work,  lots  of  it. 
Hence  he  found  an  outlet  for  part  of  his  surplus  energy  in 
attending  morning  class  in  the  First  Methodist  Church. 
Here  he  found  congenial  labor  and  fellowship  also,  with  a 
band  of  young  men  who  went  about  Sunday  mornings  to  the 
hotels  and  saloons  and  into  courts  and  alleys,  distributing 
tracts  and  inviting  people  everywhere  to  the  church  services. 

But  his  way  was  not  all  easy  inside  the  church,  any  more 
than  it  was  outside.  He  would  speak  in  meeting,  and  some- 
times speak  out  in  meeting  to  the  vexation  of  the  good  dea- 
cons, and  sometimes  even  to  the  annoyance  of  the  class 
leaders.  Worst  of  all  he  would  tell  the  Lord  what  he  thought 
of  them  in  terms  that  were  far  from  flattering;  so  that  even 
Chicago  became  tired  of  a  young  fellow  who  would  never 
keep  still;  and  he  was  too  big  to  sit  on. 

The  chilling  reception  Moody  received  from  the  churches 
might  have  been  the  Lord's  way  of  guiding  him  out  into  the 
great  work  of  his  life.  He  was  greatly  interested  in  Sunday 
schools,  and  he  certainly  had  a  taking  way  with  him.     He  be- 


EARLY   CAREER   IN   CHICAGO.  53 

came  a  recruiting  officer  at  large.  On  one  of  his  exploring 
tours  on  the  Northside  he  found  a  little  Sunday  school  in 
Wells  street  and  offered  to  take  a  class.  The  superintendent 
eyed  him  doubtfully,  and  replied  that  he  had  plenty  of  teach- 
ers, but  that  if  he  would  bring  in  a  class  he  might  have  a 
place  for  them.  The  next  Sunday  in  walked  Moody  with 
eighteen  little,  ragged,  dirty,  bareheaded,  and  barefooted 
urchins  at  his  heels,  but  every  one  of  them,  as  he  said,  having 
a  soul  to  be  saved. 

TWO  FAMOUS  PHOTOGRAPHS. 

In  strange  contrast  to  the  many  valuable  oil  paintings 
which  adorn  the  walls  of  the  Northfield,  Mass.,  home  of 
Dwight  L.  Moody  hang  two  modest  little  photographs,  fram- 
ed in  plain  oak,  which  were  said  to  be  dearer  to  the  heart  of 
the  great  evangelist  than  his  entire  collection  of  canvases 
painted  by  master  hands.  The  photographs,  which  are  re- 
'  produced  for  this  volume  in  half-tone  engravings,  are  of 
particular  interest  at  present  as  they  mark  the  beginning  of 
the  evangelistic  work  to  which  he  devoted  his  life. 

The  photographs  occupy  prominent  places  on  the  wall  of 
Mr.  Moody's  favorite  room,  and  the  strange  contrast  be- 
tween their  almost  shabby  appearance  and  that  of  their 
handsome  neighbors  attracts  the  immediate  attention  of  all 
who  enter.  The  pictures  are  eight  by  ten  inches  in  size,  and 
in  the  handwriting  of  the  great  evangelist  is  written  on  one, 
"Does  it  pay?"  on  the  other,  "It  does." 

In  response  to  inquiries  Mr.  Moody  often  laughingly  re- 
ferred to  the  pictures  as  his  "before  and  after  taking"  signs. 

The  pictures  are  companions,  and  Mr.  Moody  always  said 
one  would  be  incomplete  without  the  other.  The  first  shows 
a  group  of  fourteen  street  gamins,  ragged  and  dirty,  such  as 
can  be  found  in  the  slums  of  any  great  city,  with  Mr.  Moody 
and  John  V.  Farwell,  of  Chicago,  in  the  background.  The 
second  shows  twelve  of  the  same  boys,  clean  and  prim  and 


54  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY 

neatly  dressed  in  the  garments  boys  of  their  ages  wore  many 
years  ago.  The  pictures  are  of  peciihar  interest  as  the  pho- 
tographs of  the  boys  who  composed  the  first  class  ever  taught 
the  gospel  by  the  man  who  since  preached  to  more  persons 
and  led  more  to  salvation  than  any  man  since  the  days  of  Paul. 
Both  pictures  are  faded  by  time,  and  at  some  time  the  sec- 
ond met  with  an  accident  which  almost  obliterated  the  fea- 
tures of  the  boys.  It  was  repaired  many  years  ago  by  a  pho- 
tographer who  to-day  would  not  pass  as  an  artist  at  his  trade 
and  leaves  the  youngsters  with  an  unnaturally  spick  and  span 
appearance.  The  second  picture  shows  but  twelve  boys,  and 
Mr.  Moody  when  asked  what  became  of  the  other  two,  al- 
ways replied,  "They  were  lost,"  leaving  the  questioner  in  ig- 
norance as  to  whether  they  died  or  deserted  the  class  and 
went  back  to  their  old  haunts. 

MOODY  FINDS  HIS  MISSION. 

With  all  his  impetuosity  and  brusqueness  and  independence 
of  speech  and  manner,  Moody  was  a  very  teachable  young 
man;  only  he  was  very  like  an  old  Scotch  Elspeth  with  whom 
her  minister  one  day  had  had  a  very  long  and  heated  and 
rather  disappointing  argument.  At  last  he  broke  out  on  her 
impatiently  with  the  words,  "But  you  are  not  open  to  convic- 
tion." Instantly  she  replied:  "Yes,  I  am,  but  show  me  the 
mon  that  can  convince  me." 

One  Sunday  Moody  found  a  friend.  Are  you  astonished  at 
the  statement?  A  good  friend  is  the  scarcest  article  in  this 
world.  This  is  how  it  came  about.  Mr.  J.  B.  Stillson,  a  Pres- 
byterian elder  from  Rochester,  New  York,  was  at  that  time 
building  the  Chicago  custom  house.  Anxious  to  do  some- 
thing for  the  neglected  sailors  that  swarmed  along  the  North 
river,  he  began,  in  the  spring  of  1857,  to  visit  the  ships  in  the 
river,  holding  meetings  with  them  on  the  decks,  or  on  the 
street  corners  among  the  saloons  and  the  sailors'  boarding 
houses,  and  giving    out    tracts    and    Testaments  to  all  who 


EARLY  CAREER  IN  CHICAGO.  55 

would  receive  them.  One  Sunday  morning  he  met  a  stout, 
hearty  fellow  doing  the  same  thing,  and  they  "fell  in"  with 
each  other.  The  young  man  begged  the  privilege  of  further 
work  with  him,  saying,  "I  want  to  do  something  for  Christ, 
and  I  do  not  very  well  know  how."  Thenceforth  these  two 
men  labored  and  prayed  together  for  years  among  the  sailors, 
in  the  hospitals  and  jails,  in  the  homes  of  the  poor,  the  desti- 
tute and  degraded,  and  the  outcast,  and  recruited  scholars 
for  many  a  mission  Sunday  school.  But  Moody  was  not  long 
satisfied  with  this  half-way  kind  of  business.  He  wanted  a 
school  of  his  own,  and  finding  a  deserted  saloon  near  the 
Northside  Market  he  rented  it  for  his  school  on  Sundays  and 
for  services  during  several  evenings  of  the  week.  What  a 
place  it  was! 

Standing  on  the  sidewalk  and  looking  south  he  faced  the 
market,  a  little  beyond  it  the  north  branch  of  the  Chicago 
river,  sluggish  and  vile,  covered  with  floating  craft  of  every 
kind.  When  preaching  on  the  street  his  voice  could  be  heard 
in  two  hundred  drinking  and  gambling  dens.  But,  worst  of 
all,  away  to  the  left,  reaching  to  the  shores  of  the  lake,  to  the 
point  of  land  between  lake  and  river,  was  a  very  devil's  dump- 
ing ground.  It  was  a  sort  of  "no  man's  land,"  called  The 
Sands.  Policemen  were  glad  to  give  it  the  widest  berth. 
Disorder,  drunkenness  and  vice  reigned  supreme,  and  crime 
was  common.  It  was  pandemonium  at  night.  The  resort  of 
the  lowest  and  most  abandoned  creatures  ever  clothed  in 
human  form.  No  decent  person  could  safely  walk  those 
streets  after  dark.  But  here  the  young  barbarians  swarmed. 
They  were  just  the  kind  he  was  looking  for.  He  had  a  kind 
of  instinct  his  mission  was  to  save  the  lost.  These  waifs, 
whom  the  church  was  too  respectable  to  care  for,  at  least 
were  taking  little  or  no  care  of,  these  were  certainly  lost  and 
needed  a  shepherd's  care.  Here  was  the  field,  yet  not  a  field, 
but  a  morass,  a  moral  swamp  in  which  people  were  sinking. 
Young  and  old  were  being  literally  swallowed  up  alive  in 


S6  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

these  sink-holes  of  iniquity.  Here  was  work  hard  enough  to 
tax  all  his  energies,  yet  to  him  it  afforded  a  secret,  even  if 
undefined,  satisfaction.  Here  was  ignorance  so  dense  that 
even  he  could  teach  them;  misery  so  pitiable  he  might  bring 
them  some  relief;  souls  so  degraded  and  wretched  in  their 
sins  that  he  could  exhort  to  repentance  without  offending 
cars  polite.  In  later  years  some  gentleman,  or  at  least  a  man 
with  some  culture,  made  some  unkindly  comment  on  Mr. 
Moody's  grammatical  blunders,  and  Moody  turned  on  him, 
saying,  "Well,  you've  got  lots  of  grammar.  What  are  you  do- 
ing for  Jesus  Christ?" 

At  that  day  the  phrase  was  not  in  common  use,  but  he 
realized  the  horrible  situation  of  the  people  and  with  all  his 
strength  he  plunged  into  the  mire  to  drag  up  whom  he  could 
out  of  those  submerged  masses,  and  he  made  it  his  ambition 
to  reach  the  lowest.  His  greatest  delight  seemed  to  be  to 
search  out  the  vilest  and  most  degraded.  His  joy  was  to 
bring  the  worst  sinners  to  Christ.  Here  was  his  recruiting 
ground.  He  began  looking  for  lost  sinners  on  The  Sands. 
He  invited,  persuaded  and  finally  coaxed  the  little  ragamuf- 
fins into  his  miserable  mission  room. 

His  old  friend,  Mr.  Reynolds  of  Peoria,  III,  once  related 
this  incident  of  early  days: 

"The  first  meeting  I  ever  saw  him  at  was  in  a  little,  old 
shanty  that  had  been  abandoned  by  a  saloon  keeper.  Mr. 
Moody  had  got  the  place  to  hold  a  meeting  in  at  night.  I 
went  there  a  little  late,  and  the  first  thing  I  saw  was  a  man 
standing  up,  with  a  few  tallow  candles  around  him,  holding 
a  negro  boy  and  trying  to  read  to  him  the  story  of  the  Prodi- 
gal Son,  and  a  great  many  of  the  words  he  could  not  make 
out  and  had  to  skip.  I  thought,  If  the  Lord  can  ever  use 
such  an  instrument  as  that  for  his  honor  and  glory,  it  will 
astonish  me. 

"After  that  meeting  was  over,  Mr.  Moody  said  to  me,  'Rey- 
nolds, I  have  got  only  one  talent.     I  have  no  education  but  I 


Mrs.  M-oodv  and  Grandchildren.     Copyright  1900  by  D.  W.  Caskey,  jr. 


Mr.  Moody's  Mother. 


EARLY  CAREER  IN  CHICAGO.  57 

love  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  I  want  to  do  something  for 
him,  and  I  want  you  to  pray  for  me.'  I  have  never  ceased 
from  that  day  to  this,  morning  and  night,  to  pray  for  that 
devoted  Christian  soldier.  I  have  watched  him  since  then, 
have  had  counsel  with  him,  and  know  him  thoroughly,  and  for 
consistent  walk  and  conversation  I  have  never  met  a  man  to 
equal  him.  It  astounds  me  when  I  look  back  and  see  what 
Mr.  Moody  was  thirteen  years  ago,  and  then  what  he  is  under 
God  to-day.  Shaking  Scotland  to  its  very  center,  and 
reaching  now  over  to  Ireland.  The  last  time  I  heard  from 
him  his  injunction  was,  'Pray  for  me  every  day;  pray  now 
that  God  will  keep  me  humble.'  " 

We  can  scarcely  imagine  a  young  man  of  twenty  stumbling 
through  the  story  of  the  Prodigal  Son.  But  one  thing  is  cer- 
tain: Though  he  may  have  stumbled  over  many  words,  skip- 
ping the  words  he  could  not  make  out,  he  continued  to  study 
the  New  Testament  for  hours  together,  and  loving  Jesus 
Christ  as  he  did,  he  found  him  everywhere  and  could  tell  the 
story  of  that  love  and  sacrifice  so  that  the  negro  boy  could 
understand  it.  That  story  is  for  all  childhood  a  very  treasure 
of  love.  A  little  girl  just  able  to  read  was  very  fond  of  it  and 
when  taken  sick  and  lying  on  her  bed  she  asked  her  mother  to 
read  it  to  her.  When  the  mother  came  to  the  verses  which 
tell  how  the  father  ran  out  to  meet  the  poor,  ragged  boy,  with 
tears  in  her  eyes  she  exclaimed,  "O,  mamma,  how  good  God 
is,  how  he  loves  us."  So.  Mr.  Moody  read  the  story  to  the 
waifs  and  the  vagabonds  he  could  persuade  to  come  to  his 
shanty. 

The  first  thing  was  to  catch  the  children.  One  thing  he 
had  learned  in  the  cottage  home  at  Northfield  from  the  de- 
votion of  his  mother  and  from  daily  little  self-denials  for  each 
other's  sake  in  a  family  so  large  and  so  poor — he  had  learned 
to  love  children.  He  loved  them  intensely,  but  how  to  catch 
these  street  Arabs,  these  little  heathen  who  lived  in  hovels  and 
received  more  kicks  and  cuffs  than  bread,  and  more  curses 


S8  DVVIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

than  affection?  There  was  nothing  in  the  shanty  to  attract 
the  children,  only  a  few  ricketty  chairs  and  wooden  benches 
along  the  walls.  We  are  told  that  he  invested  comparatively 
large  sums  of  money  out  of  his  small  earnings  in  maple  sugar, 
filled  his  pockets  with  the  broken  pieces  and  then  started  for 
The  Sands.  In  this  way  he  won  their  confidence  and  at 
length  came  to  be  known,  by  sight  at  least,  to  every  man, 
woman  and  child  in  all  that  district. 

Soon  he  had  a  crowd  of  young  ruffians  in  his  mission  with 
his  friends,  Mr.  Stillson  and  Mr.  Trudeau,  to  help  him. 
Classes  there  were  none.  "All  three  worked  to  their  full- 
est capacity  in  quieting  several  simultaneous  scuffles  and 
fights  in  different  corners  of  the  rooms;  rescuing  little  boys 
from  the  clutches  of  the  big  ones,  and  keeping  down  the  noise 
among  this  mob  of  children,  who,  between  the  prayers  and 
hymns  would  pull  each  other's  hair  and  black  each  other's 
eyes  in  a  manner  which  left  no  doubt  of  the  strictly  missionary 
character  of  the  school." 

Mr.  Moody  did  not  fret  himself  out  of  patience.  He  had 
worked  hard  to  get  them  there.  He  had  promised  the  Lord 
to  do  what  he  could  to  save  them.  If  it  should  take  a  separate 
teacher  for  every  boy  and  every  girl  in  the  room,  "that  school 
was  fore-ordained  to  go  on." 

OUTGROWING  THE  SHANTY 

And  go  on  it  did  most  famously,  as  the  following  extract 
will  show: 

"In  i860  Mr.  George  H.  Stuart  made  a  trip  to  Europe  and 
went  up  to  Edinburgh  to  attend  the  meetings  of  the  Assem- 
blies of  the  Old  Kirk  and  the  Free  Church.  Mr.  Spurgeon 
was  there  also,  by  special  invitation,  to  address  the  Free 
Church  Assembly.  A  breakfast  was  given  Mr.  Spurgeon  by 
some  friends  of  the  Sabbath  school  cause  by  way  of  welcome. 

"While  Rev.  William  Arnot  was  speaking  some  one  sent  up 
Mr.  Stuart's  name  as  a  friend  from  America  interested  in 
Sabbath  schools.     As  soon  as  Mr.  Arnot  sat  down  he  was 


EARLY  CAREER  IN  CHICAGO.  59 

called  on  by  the  chairman  to  come  up  and  in  five  minutes 
tell  all  about  the  Sabbath  schools  of  America, 
A  FIVE  MINUTE  SPEECH. 

"Taking  out  my  watch,  I  commenced  by  stating  that,  as  the 
subject  was  a  large  one  and  the  time  for  its  discussion  was 
brief,  I  would  waive  all  introductory  remarks  and  proceed  at 
once  to  the  discussion  of  the  subject,  dividing  it  into  three 
heads:  First,  a  place;  second,  a  man;  third,  a  school.  I  said 
that  when  I  went  to  America  as  a  young  man  the  place  about 
which  I  was  to  speak  had  thirty-three  inhabitants  and  that 
being  there  last  summer  with  my  wife  and  daughter,  I  was 
obliged  to  get  a  policeman  to  help  us  across  one  of  the  princi- 
pal thoroughfares,  the  crowd  being  so  great;  and  that  this 
place  had  at  that  time  three  hundred  and  seventy-five  thous- 
and inhabitants.  The  people  glanced  at  each  other  as  much 
as  to  say,  'That  is  a  Yankee  story.'     So  much  for  the  place. 

"The  man,  when  a  young  lad  left  his  quiet  country  home  to 
make  his  w'ay  through  the  world,  and  found  a  situation  in  a 
shoe  store  in  one  of  our  large  cities.  The  head  of  the  house 
took  the  lad  to  his  Sabbath  school  and  placed  him  in  the  class 
of  a  young  teacher  w^ho  w'as  eminently  successful  in  interest- 
ing the  boys  under  his  charge.  This  country  lad,  being  handed 
a  Bible  and  trying  to  find  the  lesson,  which  was  in  one  of  the 
epistles,  was  looking  for  it  in  Genesis — which  set  the  other 
boys  laughing.  The  teacher  kindly  handed  the  pupil  his  own 
Bible  opened  at  the  right  place. 

"This  boy  afterwards  was  converted  in  that  church,  which 
he  proposed  to  join,  but  the  pastor  found  him  so  ignorant 
that  he  declined  to  receive  him  for  some  six  months.  This 
pastor  was  Dr.  Kirk,  of  Boston,  who  told  me  this  himself,  and 
said  that  he  had  afterwards  listened  to  the  preaching  of  that 
boy  with  interest  and  profit.  This  country  boy  soon  after  his 
conversion  removed  to  the  place  I  have  referred  to,  and  soon 
after,  being  still  regarded  as  too  ignorant  to  teach  in  the 
church  Sabbath  school,  founded  one  of  his  own. 


6o  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

"This  I  had  visited  when  I  was  in  the  place  referred  to  on 
an  exceedingly  hot  summer  day,  with  the  thermometer  at 
98  degrees — so  hot,  indeed,  that  one  of  the  most  eloquent 
preachers  in  the  land,  Dr.  Rufus  Clarke,  of  Albany,  adjourned 
the  morning  service  to  meet  in  the  lecture  room  in  the  even- 
ing on  account  of  the  extreme  heat.  Yet  in  that  school  I 
found  over  one  thousand  scholars,  who  were  taught  as  well 
as  superintended,  by  this  country  boy.  I  closed  my  five- 
minute  address  in  time  by  saying  that  the  place  was  Chicago, 
the  boy  was  Dwight  L.  Moody,  and  the  school  the  Illinois 
Mission.  I  do  not  believe  that  half  a  dozen  of  those  present 
fully  believed  my  story  and  probably  not  one  of  them  had  ever 
heard  of  Mr.  Moody." 

THE  NORTH  MARKET  MISSION. 

It  was  not  long  before  Mr.  Moody  found  his  school  out- 
growing the  quarters  in  the  old  shanty.  He  must  find  larger 
accommodations.  Over  the  Old  North  Market,  which  be- 
longed to  the  city,  was  a  great  hall,  generally  used  on  Sat- 
urday nights  for  dancing.  By  special  permission  of  Mayor 
Haines  the  school  was  transferred  to  this  hall.  For  years 
this  remained  the  home  of  one  of  the  most  wonderful  mission 
schools  in  the  country.  The  story  of  its  early  trials  is  now 
an  old  one.  The  condition  of  that  hall  on  Sunday  mornings 
was  most  horrible.  It  took  Mr.  Moody  and  his  assistants 
most  of  the  forenoon  to  sweep  out  the  sawdust  and  wash  out 
the  tobacco  and  beer  slops.  This  was  the  more  imperative 
as  for  sometime  there  were  no  chairs  or  benches,  and  the  chil- 
dren, and  indeed  the  whole  school,  were  obliged  to  stand  or 
else  sit  on  the  floor.  Mr.  Moody  himself  could  not  stand  this 
sort  of  thing  very  long,  and  he  started  out  to  raise  the  money 
needed  to  seat  it.  Among  the  many  to  whom  he  applied  was 
Mr.  J.  V.  Farwell,  a  wealthy  merchant  whom  he  had  met  at 
the  First  Methodist  Church.  After  securing  his  money  he 
invited  him  over  to  see  the  school.  The  next  Sunday  Mr. 
Farwell  appeared  as  a  visitor;  but  never  had  he  witnessed 


EARLY  CAREER  IN  CHICAGO.  6i 

such  a  scene  as  that  hall  presented.  The  seats  had  not  yet 
arrived.  The  noise  at  times  was  like  bedlam  let  loose.  The 
school  was  sprawling  on  the  floor,  or  leaning  against  the 
walls.  Boys  were  tussling,  turning  somersaults,  crying  out 
"Papers!"  "Have  a  shine,  Mister?"  There  were  a  few  quieter 
moments  occasionally  while  the  scriptures  were  being  read, 
or  Mr.  Trudeau  was  singing,  or  Mr.  Moody  was  talking  to 
them.  Classes,  of  course,  there  were  none.  Mr.  Farwell 
was  soon  called  to  make  a  speech,  and  then  to  his  horror  Mr. 
Moody  nominated  him  as  superintendent  of  the  school.  Be- 
fore he  could  object  he  was  elected  with  a  wild  hurrah;  in- 
stalled that  very  day,  and  for  six  years  the  enterprise  of 

MOODY,  FARWELL  &  COMPANY, 
flourished  at  the  old  market  stand.  It  soon  became  very 
popular.  In  three  months  it  increased  to  two  hundred;  in 
six  months  to  three  hundred  and  fifty,  and  within  a  year  the 
average  attendance  was  about  six  hundred  and  fifty,  with  an 
occasional  crowd  of  nearly  a  thousand.  It  was  estimated  that 
about  two  thousand  children  passed  through  that  school 
every  year.  It  was  of  this  school  that  Mr.  George  H.  Stuart 
spoke  so  enthusiastically  in  Edinburgh  in  i860,  to  the  great 
astonishment,  if  not  incredulity,  of  his  hearers. 

The  school  became  immensely  popular.  Leading  members 
of  prominent  churches  volunteered  as  teachers,  and  many 
wealthy  persons  became  interested  in  its  support.  Let  us  not 
suppose  that  this  school  grew  of  itself.  Behind  it  were  the 
tremendous  energies  of  Mr.  Moody  and  the  assistance  of 
many  friends. 

In  one  of  his  sermons  to  young  men  in  Edinburgh  on  "The 
Lord's  Workers,"  he  said:  "What  men  want  in  doing  the 
Lord's  work  is  courage,  "enthusiasm,  perseverance  and  sym- 
pathy. 

"Enthusiasm:  We  need  more  enthusiasm.  The  more  we 
have  the  better.  I  have  a  great  admiration  for  Garabaldi, 
though  I  cannot,  of  course,  approve  of  all  his  acts.     When 


62  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

put  in  prison  lie  said:  'It  were  better  that  fifty  Garabaldis 
should  perish  than  that  Rome  should  not  be  free'  This  was 
the  cause  getting  above  the  man.  That  is  what  we  want. 
We  want  to  forget  ourselves.  There  are  one  hundred  thous- 
and men  waiting  now  to  be  brought  to  Christ,  to  be  invited  to 
come  to  Him,  and  shall  we  hang  back?  Let  us  have  enthu- 
siasm." 

"Perseverance:  'This  one  thing  I  do,'  said  Paul.  He  had 
received  thirty-nine  stripes,  and  if  he  had  other  thirty-nine 
stripes  to  receive,  still  'This  one  thing  I  do,'  he  said,  'forget- 
ting the  things  that  are  behind  I  press  towards  the  mark.'  A 
terrible  man  he  was — this  man  of  one  thing,  and  one  aim,  and 
determined  to  go  on  doing  it.     To  every  man  his  work." 

And  this  young  man  in  Chicago,  what  a  terrible  worker  he 
was! 

A  MAN  OF  TIRELESS  ENERGY. 
Here  was  ample  opportunity  to  test  his  muscles  of  steel  and 
to  try  the  courage  of  the  young  lion.  Every  evening  in  the 
week,  in  all  weather,  Mr.  Moody  a-nd  his  friend,  Mr.  Stillson, 
or  other  companion,  were  steadily  engaged  from  close  of 
business  until  ten  or  eleven  o'clock  at  night.  He  would  not 
let  the  devil  have  it  all  his  own  way  even  in  Chicago.  On 
Sunday  mornings  they  made  a  grand  excursion  through  "The 
Sands"  and  other  lost  regions,  seeking  to  gather  the  wild 
boys  and  girls  from  the  streets  into  the  Sabbath  schools. 

Sometimes  he  was  in  danger  of  his  life  from  enraged  Catho- 
lics whose  children  he  may  have  coaxed  into  his  heretical 
school.  Not  once,  but  many  times,  have  such  fathers  seized 
a  club  and  rushed  upon  him  with  oaths  and  curses.  At  such 
times  Mr.  Moody  would  give  heed  to  the  words  of  the  wise 
Master  to  his  earlier  missionaries:  "If  they  persecute  you  in 
one  city,  flee  ye  into  another;"  saying  that  his  legs  were  his 
best  friends.  How  little  he  knew,  when  climbing  the  moun- 
tains in  Northficld  what  those  legs  of  his  were  in  training  for. 
But  they  had  this  peculiarity,  that,  after  taking  him  out  of 


EARLY  CAREER  IN  CHICAGO.  63 

danger  one  day,  they  would  carry  him  right  back  into  it  again 
the  next  day.  But  under  other  circumstances  his  advice  was 
different  as  the  following  story  told  by  Mr.  Hawley  will  iUus- 
trate: 

One  of  the  larger  boys  came  to  Moody  one  Sunday  after- 
noon, seeming  to  be  in  great  trouble  and  asking  for  confiden- 
tial advice.  It  appeared  that  his  father  was  a  violent  Roman 
Catholic  and  a  miserable  drunkard  besides;  kind  enough  to 
his  family  when  not  in  liquor,  but  almost  certain  to  be  drunk 
every  Sunday  and  equally  certain  to  give  his  son  an  unmerci- 
ful flogging  on  his  return  from  the  North  Market  School. 
The  boy,  who  had  outgrown  his  wild  ways  and  learned  some- 
thing of  Christian  duty,  had  endured  this  treatment  for  a 
long  time  rather  than  run  away  from  home  and  leave  his  poor 
mother  and  his  little  sisters,  whom  he  hoped  some  time  to  lead 
into  a  better  way  of  life. 

On  hearing  the  case  Mr.  Moody  replied,  "You  must  take 
advice  of  some  one  who  is  strong,"  by  which  the  boy  at  once 
understood  that  he  must  ask  help  of  the  Lord.  This  he  did; 
and  then,  going  home,  was  met  at  the  door  by  his  father  in  a 
drunken  rage,  ready  to  give  him  the  customary  beating. 

Deliberately  taking  oflf  his  coat  he  said: 

"Father,  you  have  always  been  kind  to  me  when  you  are 
not  in  liquor;  it  is  not  my  father  but  whiskey  that  beats  me 
every  Sunday;  so  now  I  am  going  to  fight  the  whiskey." 

The  old  man,  by  no  means  cooled  by  such  words,  fell  upon 
him  with  fury,  but  in  the  struggle  which  followed  whiskey  was 
so  thoroughly  beaten  that  from  that  time  the  father  let  his 
son  go  to  his  mission  school  in  peace. 

But  his  elder  brother  also  a  papist,  took  the  matter  in  hand, 
and  for  a  change  proposed  to  thrash  Mr.  Moody,  whom  he 
had  never  seen,  as  he  had  lately  returned  to  the  city  after  a 
long  absence;  but  before  a  convenient  opportunity  arrived  he 
was  taken  sick  with  a  fever  and  for  some  time  lay  dangerously 
ill. 


64  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

Among  those  who  came  to  watch  with  him  were  some  of 
the  teachers  of  that  hated  North  Market  School,  and  present- 
ly Moody  himself,  who  sat  up  with  him  a  night  or  two  watch- 
ing for  a  chance  to  help  the  poor  fellow's  soul.  On  learning 
who  the  warm-hearted  stranger  was,  all  his  anger  passed 
away.  The  promised  beating  was  referred  to  no  more,  and 
he  became  as  active  a  friend  as  he  had  been  an  enemy. 

Mr.  Moody  was  never  too  tired  to  visit  the  sick  to  comfort 
and  pray  with  them.  He  believed  in  practical  piety,  before 
the  sociological,  impersonal  phrase,  "Applied  Christianity," 
was  invented.  When  his  own  funds  ran  low  he  would  beg  of 
his  friends  that  he  might  buy  food  and  clothing  for  some  of 
the  poorest  of  the  poor.  One  very  wealthy  gentleman  would 
sometimes  join  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Stillson  in  the  rounds  at 
night.  On  these  happy  occasions  he  would  provide  himself 
with  a  quantity  of  one-dollar  notes  folded  separately  and 
sometimes  give  away  forty  or  fifty  in  a  single  evening  among 
their  poor  and  sick  parishioners. 
Mr.  Moody  was  emphatically 

A  MAN  OF  ONE  BOOK. 
His  friend,  Mr.  Stillson,  declared  that  during  those  years  he 
did  not  know  of  Moody's  owning  any  other  book,  except  a 
copy  of  the  New  Testament.  This  was  his  sheet  anchor. 
No  man  was  more  hungry  for  learning  than  he,  but  his  desire 
was  wholly  in  the  direction  of  learning  how  to  work  for 
Christ.  He  was  determined  to  know  nothing,  save  Jesus 
Christ  and  Him  crucified;  and  that  he  did  know  and  that  was 
what  he  taught.  There  were  no  series  of  Lesson  Helps  in 
those  days,  but  every  scholar  and  teacher  had  the  one  book — 
a  copy  of  the  New  Testament.  Thus  whatever  the  denomi- 
national preferences  might  be,  the  gospel  which  was  its  great 
theme  and  inspiration,  made  this  school  a  unit  and  held  it 
close  to  Christ.  It  was  not  so  specifically  a  Sunday  school, 
as  a  gospel  school.  That  text  rang  in  his  ears,  "Seek  first 
the  kingdom  of  God  and  His  righteousness." 


EARLY  CAREER  IN  CHICAGO.  65 

Mr.  Moody  believed  that  the  shortest  road  to  education 
and  refinement  was  the  road  that  led  to  the  cross  of  Christ, 
and  the  gate  of  heaven.  If  he  could  make  Christians  of  these 
wild  boys  and  girls,  he  believed  they  would  make  gentlemen 
and  ladies  of  themselves.  The  best  praying  was  that  which 
brought  the  greatest  blessing,  no  matter  how  rude  and  un- 
couth the  language;  and  the  best  exhorting  was  that  which 
brought  sinners  the  quickest  to  Christ.  DeaHng  so  constant- 
ly with  the  ignorant  and  degraded,  brought  face  to  face  with 
the  sins  and  "sorrows  of  immortal  souls  that  were  fearfully  be- 
nighted, his  message  must  needs  be  a  simple  one,  and  he 
found  it  in  the  terms  laid  down  by  the  apostle,  "Believe  on  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  and  thou  shalt  be  saved."  To  his  mind 
nothing  couM  be  easier  and  to  those  poor  people  it  also  ap- 
peared easy.  They  did  as  they  were  taught:  "They  reached 
out  their  'lirty  hands  to  take  Christ,  and  attended  to  the 
washing  of  their  hands  afterwards."  "He  that  winneth  souls 
is  wise."  \nd  measured  by  that  standard  there  was  not  to  be 
found  among  laity  or  clergy,  even  at  that  early  hour  in  his 
rising  career,  a  wiser  man  than  the  rough,  impetuous  leader 
of  the  North  Market  Mission  School. 

THE  INFIDEL  RUMSELLER. 

One  day  a  friend  reported  a  family  to  him  where  there  were 
several  children  "due"  at  the  mission — for  Mr.  Moody 
claimed  every  child  in  the  region  for  his  school — but  the 
father  was  a  notorious  infidel  saloon  keeper,  and  would  not 
let  them  come.     But  we  will  let  Mr.  ]\Ioody  tell  the  story: 

"There  was  a  terribly  wicked  man  whose  children  I  was 
very  anxious  to  draw  to  my  Sabbath  school.  So  one  day  I 
called  on  this  man  and  said,  'Mr.  Bell,  I  want  you  to  let  your 
children  come  to  Sabbath  School.'  He  was  very  angry,  said 
he  did  not  believe  in  the  Bible,  school  or  anything  else,  and 
ordered  me  to  leave  the  house.  Soon  after  I  went  down 
again  and  invited  him  to  come  to  church.  He  said  that  he 
had  not  been  at  church  for  nineteen  years,  and  would  never 
5 


66  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

go  again;  that  he  would  rather  see  his  son  a  drunkard  and 
his  daughter  a  harlot  than  that  they  should  attend  the  school, 
and  drove  me  away  with  violent  curses. 

"A  few  days  after  I  called  again,  and  he  said,  'Well,  I  guess 
you  are  a  pretty  good-natured  sort  of  a  man  and  different 
from  the  rest  of  Christians  or  you  would  not  come  back.' 
Seeing  that  he  was  in  a  good  humor,  I  asked  him  what  he  had 
to  say  against  Christ  and  if  he  had  read  His  life,  and  he  asked 
me  what  I  had  to  say  against  Paine's  Age  of  Reason,  and  if 
I  had  read  it.  I  said  I  had  not,  whereupon  he  said  that  he 
would  read  the  New  Testament  if  I  would  read  the  'Age  of 
Reason.'  To  this  I  at  once  agreed,  though  he  had  the  best 
of  the  bargain.  Again  I  asked  Mr.  Bell  to  come  to  church, 
but  he  said  the  people  were  all  hypocrites  that  went  to 
church." 

That  bargain  gave  Mr.  Moody  a  chance  to  call  again  to 
take  him  the  Testament,  and  not  long  after  he  called  to  see 
how  he  was  getting  on,  and  found  him  full  of  objections  and 
hot  for  debate. 

"See  here,  young  man,"  said  he,  "you  are  inviting  me  and 
my  family  to  go  to  meeting,  now  you  may  have  a  meeting  here 
if  you  like." 

"What,  will  you  let  me  preach  here  in  your  saloon?" 

"Yes." 

"And  will  you  bring  in  your  family  and  let  me  bring  in  the 
neighbors?" 

"Yes;  but  mind,  you  are  not  to  do  all  the  talking.  I  and 
my  friends  will  have  something  to  say." 

"All  right;  you  shall  have  forty-five  minutes,  and  I  will  have 
fifteen. 

"The  day  came,  and  I  went  to  keep  my  appointment,  but  I 
never  in  all  my  life  met  such  a  crowd  as  I  met  at  that  saloon. 
Such  a  collection  of  deists,  infidels  and  reprobates  of  all  kinds, 
I  never  saw  before.  Their  language  and  their  oaths  were 
horrible.     Some  of  them  seemed  as  if  they  had  come  on  leave 


EARLY  CAREER  IN  CHICAGO.  67 

of  absence  from  the  pit.     I  never  was  so  near  hell  before." 

"You  shall  begin,"  said  Mr.  Moody;  and  with  that  they  be- 
gan to  ask  him  questions. 

"No  questions,"  said  he;  "I  haven't  come  to  argue  with 
you,  but  to  preach  Christ  to  you." 

Then  they  began  to  talk  and  to  argue  among  themselves. 
They  couldn't  agree;  they  quarreled  and  came  very  near  to 
fighting  before  their  debate  was  over. 

"When  their  time  was  up,  I  said  that  we  Christians  always 
began  services  with  prayer.  'Hold,  said  they,  'two  must  be 
agreed  first.'  Well,  here  are  two  of  us  (for  a  little  boy  who 
had  been  converted  in  the  mission  was  with  him),  and  so  I 
prayed.  Then  the  little  boy  did  so.  I  never  heard  a  prayer 
like  that  in  all  my  Hfe.  It  seemed  as  if  God  was  speaking 
through  that  little  boy.  With  tears  running  down  his  cheeks 
he  besought  God,  for  Christ's  sake,  to  take  pity  on  all  those 
poor  men,  and  that  went  to  their  very  hearts.  I  heard  sobs 
throughout  the  hall  and  one  infidel  went  out  at  this  door, 
and  another  at  that;  and  Mr.  Bell  came  up  to  me  and  said: 
'You  can  have  my  children,  Mr.  Moody.'  And  one  of  the 
best  friends  I  have  in  Chicago  is  that  same  Joshua  Bell,  and 
his  son  has  come  out  for  Christ  and  as  a  worker  for  Him." 

Mr.  Stillson  mentions  the  desperate  case  of  a  boy  they 
found  on  The  Sands.  He  was  a  sort  of  chief  of  a  gang  of 
guttersnipes,  and  it  was  a  long  time  before  they  could  catch 
this  young  ruffian,  even  with  missionary  sugar,  and  invite 
him  to  come  to  the  mission  school.  It  was  a  bitter  cold  day 
in  February  when  he  made  his  appearance  at  the  door  of  the 
Mission.  The  only  garment  he  had  was  a  man's  old  over- 
coat, so  ragged  that  it  had  to  be  stitched  together  around 
his  body,  giving  him  the  appearance  of  being  sewed  up  in  a 
great,  dirty  bag.  A  big  pair  of  shoes,  and  papers  tied  about 
his  legs  completed  his  winter  costume.  Mr.  Moody,  as  soon 
as  he  caught  sight  of  him.  gave  him  his  hand,  pulled  him  in, 
and  marching  with  him  the  whole  length  of  the  room  gave 


68  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

him  a  place  in  a  class  with  the  same  Kindness  and  attention 
he  would  have  shown  to  the  best  dressed  boy  on  the  North 
Side. 

At  sight  of  this  wretched  waif,  a  stranger  visiting  the  school 
was  moved  to  tears.  After  the  exercises  were  over,  he  took 
him  to  his  own  house  and  gave  him  a  full  suit  of  clothes  be- 
longing to  his  own  son.  This  wild  lad,  thus  civilized  in  ap- 
pearance, continued  to  attend  school,  and  one  by  one  brought 
all  his  followers  with  him.  "That  lad"  said  Mr.  Stillson,  "is 
now  a  Christian  gentleman,  in  receipt  of  a  large  salary,  and 
superintendent  of  a  Sunday  school  in  one  of  our  large  cities." 

In  his  explorations  one  Saturday  evening  Mr.  Moody  found 
in  a  house  a  jug  of  whiskey,  which  the  men  had  brought  home 
to  drink  the  next  day.  They  were  all  aw^ay  from  home;  but 
Moody  gave  the  women  a  rousing  temperance  lecture,  and 
persuaded  them  to  let  him  pour  the  whiskey  into  the  street. 
Early  on  Sunday  afternoon  he  returned  for  the  children.  He 
found  the  men  lying  in  wait  for  him  to  give  him  a  beating. 
They  were  furious,  and  the  situation  was  desperate,  as  one 
of  them  had  stepped  between  him  and  the  door.  As  they 
were  about  to  fall  on  him,  Mr.  Moody,  whose  self-possession 
and  courage  seemed  never  to  forsake  him  said  to  them: 

"See  here,  now,  my  men,  if  you  are  going  to  whip  me  for 
spilling  the  whiskey  you  might  at  least  give  me  time  to  say 
my  prayers." 

This  struck  them  as  such  a  novel  idea,  they  agreed  to  it, 
just  for  the  fun  of  the  thing.  But  they  had  never  heard  such 
a  prayer  in  all  their  lives.  They  were  at  first  astonished, 
then  confounded,  and  at  last  ashamed  of  themselves. 

When  he  had  finished  his  prayer,  they  gathered  about  him, 
declaring  that  he  was  a  good  fellow;  and  in  a  few  minutes  he 
was  away  for  the  mission  with  all  the  children  at  his  heels. 
MR.  LINCOLN  VISITS  THE  MISSION. 

The  visit  of  Mr.  Lincoln,  president-elect,  to  the  school  one 
Sabbath  in  i860  was  a  memorable  event.     Learning  of  his 


EARLY  CAREER  IN  CHICAGO.  6g 

presence  in  the  city,  Mr.  Farwell  called  at  his  hotel  and 
secured  from  Mrs.  Lincoln  a  promise  on  the  president's  be- 
half that  he  would  visit  the  school  the  following  Sunday. 
When  the  carriage  was  sent  for  him,  Mr.  Lincoln  was  seated 
at  a  dinner  party  given  in  his  honor,  but  excusing  himself,  he 
took  a  hasty  leave  and  departed.  On  the  way  over  the  river 
he  requested  not  to  be  called  on  for  a  speech.  Addressing 
Sabbath  schools  was  quite  out  of  his  line.  But  when  he  was 
introduced  as  the  president-elect  of  the  United  States,  the 
big  boys  went  wild,  and  called  for  a  speech.  It  is  said  that 
this  was  the  first  and  only  time  in  his  life  that  President  Lin- 
coln made  a  Sunday  school  address.  There  was  not  a  word 
of  religion  in  it,  but  he  told  the  boys  and  girls  that  they  were 
in  the  right  place  and  learning  right  things,  and  that,  if  they 
gave  heed  to  what  they  were  taught  they  would  grow  up  to 
be  useful  and  respected  citizens. 

Sixty  of  those  big,  rough  boys,  a  few  months  later,  after 
Fort  Sumter  was  fired  on,  answered  the  call  to  arms.  They 
had  heard  and  seen  the  man;  it  was  their  president  who  was 
calling  them. 

By  this  time  the  exactions  of  a  school  of  a  thousand  chil- 
dren became  very  great.  In  Mr.  Moody's  heart  and  ears  was 
ringing  constantly  the  cry  of  the  destitute,  degraded  and  the 
dying.  It  was  an  exceedingly  sad  and  bitter  cry.  A  singular 
providence  just  at  that  juncture  emphasized  the  cry  and  led 
him  to  give  up  his  business  and  enlist  for  Hfe  under  the  ban- 
ner of  the  cross,  for  the  service  of  Christ,  in  seeking  the  sal- 
vation of  his  fellowmen. 


Begins  to  Live  by  Faith. 

^/^  PON  June  15th,  1854,  the  Philadelphia  Young 
ml  I  Men's  Christian  Association  was  organized,  with 
■  \S)I  fifty-seven  members.  Mr.  George  H.  Stuart 
^i«J  was  elected  its  first  president.  A  small  room  was 
hired  on  Chestnut  street  below  Seventh,  which  for 
some  time  after  was  opened  only  in  the  evenings.  The  inter- 
est in  the  work,  however,  increased  so  rapidly  that  it  was 
deemed  necessary  to  secure  the  services  of  a  permanent,  paid 
secretary,  and  Mr.  John  Wanamaker,  then  a  clerk  in  a  cloth- 
ing store,  was  elected  and  entered  upon  his  duties — being  the 
first  paid  secretary  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Associa- 
tion in  America. 

The  great  revival  of  1857-8  brought  the  laymen  forward 
into  greater  activity  than  any  previous  religious  movement 
in  this  country.  The  Philadelphia  Association  was  privileged 
to  take  special  part  in  the  awakening  of  that  memorable  year. 
One  early  result  of  that  movement  was  the  establishment  of 
a  daily  noon-day  prayer  meeting  which  grew  so  rapidly  in 
numbers  that  thousands  met  daily  in  Jayne's  Hall,  while  mul- 
titudes more  were  turned  away.  This  great  wave  of  religious 
enthusiasm  which  swept  over  the  land  during  that  winter, 
wrought  out,  in  the  organization  of  the  Young  Men's  Chris- 
tian Association,  a  great  and  permanent  blessing  to  the  city  of 
Chicago. 

Stimulated  by  the  great  success  attending  the  meetings 
held  in  Jayne's  Hall,  Philadelphia,  and  the  Fulton  Street 
prayer  meetings  in  New  York,  daily  noon  meetings  were  also 
held  in  Chicago  under  the  auspices  of  their  Association.  So 
long  as  the  fervor  of  the  religious  awakening  continued,  the 
meetings  were  well  attended,  and  Mr.  Moody  found  abun- 
dant opportunity  for  utilizing  some  of  his  surplus  energy. 


BEGINS  TO  LIVE  BY  FAITH.  71 

He  was  regular  in  his  attendance  at  these  meetings,  and  made 
himself  very  conspicuous  and  somewhat  disagreeable  by  his 
sharp  and  bold  attacks  upon  the  social  sins  of  fashionable 
society.     Those  who  have  heard  Mr.  Moody  in  later  years 
using  such  plain  and  pungent  language  when  denouncing  the 
habits  of  those  professors  of  religion  who  wish  to  enjoy  as 
many  as  possible  of  the  pleasures  of  the  world,  without  spoil- 
ing their  final  chance  of  heaven,  can  easily  imagine  how  much 
less  palatable  would  be  the  ruder  speech  of  those  earHer  days. 
He  certainly  had  little  respect  for  persons  and  none  for  the 
mere  dignities  of  fashion,  wealth  or  station.     Hence,  when 
the  tides  of  revival  began  to  recede,  many  sensitive  but  care- 
less people  who  had  been  pricked  in  their  consciences  by  his 
sharp  thrusts  and  yet  were  not  converted  to  a  higher  spiritual 
life,  ceased  to  attend  and  the  meetings  began  to  drag  heavily. 
But  the  man  who  had  overcome  such  terrible  obstacles  and 
accomplished  so  much  in  the  North  Market  Mission — which 
had  been  started  against  the  advice  of  every  minister  in  the 
neighborhood — was  not  likely  to  cease  speaking  that  which 
he  believed  to  be  the  truth,  whatever  the  cofdness  and  dis- 
favor might  be  with  which    it    was    received.     Many  causes 
conspiring,  however,  the  attendance  fell  of¥  to  a  half  dozen, 
he  being  one  of  the  six;  and  when  there  were  but  three,  he 
was  one  of  the  three — the  other  two  very  likely  being  his 
good  friends,  J.  V.  Farwell  and  B.  F.  Jacobs.     We  are  told 
that  upon  one  occasion  all  these  brethren  being  out  of  town, 
nobody  went  to  the  prayer  meeting    but    one    old    Scotch 
woman.     This  excellent  old  body  set  great  store  by  the  noon 
meeting  and  when  no  one  else  appeared,  she  determined  to 
hold  it  herself  rather  than  have  it  fail  even  for  a  single  day. 
So  after  waiting  a  long  time,  she  put  on  her  spectacles,  went 
forward  to  the  leader's  desk,    read    a    passage  of  scripture, 
talked  it  over  to  herself  for  the  comfort  of  her  old  heart,  then 
offered  prayer  for  the  languishing  meeting  and  for  the  out- 
pouring of  the  Holy  Spirit  upon  it  and  upon  the  city.     Prayer 


72  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

being  ended,  she  sang  a  psalm,  and  the  time  having  thus  been 
all  improved  she  went  comfortably  home,  feeling  that  she  had 
done  her  duty,  gained  a  blessing  and  saved  the  noon  prayer 
meeting  from  being  utterly  extinguished. 

The  narration  of  this  experience  made  a  deep  impression 
on  the  hearts  of  some  of  the  brethren.  Mr.  Moody  at  once 
set  to  work  to  muster  the  forces  and  gather  new  recruits  with 
the  same  energy  that  made  him  so  successful  in  his  mission 
work.  The  interest  revived,  the  numbers  increased,  and  the 
presence  of  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  gladdened  and  refreshed 
their  hearts.     All  this  time,  however,  Mr.  Moody  was 

ATTENDING  TO  BUSINESS 
being  still  determined  to  make  his  fortune  in  trade.  He  had 
already  secured  a  decided  advance  in  salary  and  a  percentage 
on  sales.  During  the  hours  devoted  to  business  he  threw 
himself  into  his  work  with  greatest  interest.  One  gentle- 
man has  thus  described  his  manner  as  a  salesman: 

"He  would  never  sit  down  in  the  store  to  chat  or  read  the 
papers,  as  the  other  clerks  did  when  there  were  no  customers; 
but  as  soon  as  he  had  served  one  buyer  he  was  on  the  lookout 
for  another.  If  none  appeared,  he  would  start  off  to  the 
hotels  or  depots,  or  walk  the  streets  in  search  of  one.  He 
would  sometimes  stand  on  the  sidewalk  in  front  of  his  place 
of  business,  looking  eagerly  up  and  down  for  a  man  who 
had  the  appearance  of  a  merchant  from  the  country;  and 
some  of  his  fellow  clerks  were  accustomed  laughingly  to  say, 
'There  is  the  spider  again  watching  for  a  fly.'  " 

He  was  always  busy,  either  serving  his  customers  or  look- 
ing for  new  ones,  but"  never  idle.  By  his  genial,  hearty  man- 
ner, his  willingness  to  oblige  his  customers  and  to  take  any 
amount  of  trouble  to  please  them,  his  share  of  trade  rapidly 
increased.  His  reputation  for  honest,  truthful  dealing  was 
firmly  established.  His  eagerness,  however,  to  turn  in  the 
largest  sales  sometimes  led  him  into  errors  of  judgment  that 
a  more  prudent  man  would  have  avoided.     We  find  the  fol- 


BEGINS  TO  LIVE  BY  FAITH.  73 

lowing  incident  related  of  him  by  one  of  his  employers: 

"We  regarded  him  as  an  excellent  salesman,  but  a  poor 
judge  of  credits.  In  one  particular  instance  he  sold  goods 
amounting  to  over  two  hundred  dollars,  to  a  man  whom  we 
found  rated  as  'doubtful'  in  the  Mercantile  Directory,  and 
therefore  refused  to  send  them.  But  Mr.  Moody  at  once 
came  to  the  rescue  of  his  customer,  declared  him  to  be  'as 
good  as  the  Bank  of  England'  and  offered  to  be  responsible 
for  the  bill.  On  this  we  sent  the  goods;  and  when  the  money 
was  due,  sure  enough  it  was  Moody  who  paid  it." 

But  as  time  went  on  the  affairs  of  his  mission  school  began 
to  crowd  in  upon  his  mind  and  heart,  and  when  not  closely  en- 
gaged in  business,  the  undercurrent  of  his  thoughts  was  al- 
ways running  over  to  the  North  Side.  His  business  acquain- 
tances and  fellow  salesmen  began  to  think  him  unsocial,  but 
with  his  friends  at  the  mission  and  all  persons  interested  in 
Christian  work,  he  was  on  the  happiest  terms  of  intimacy  and 
heartiest  good  fellowship. 

In  personal  habits  he  was  very  economical  and  he  might 
have  saved  considerable  money  but  for  the  claims  of  the  mis- 
sion and  the  poor,  distressed  children  he  had  gathered  into 
the  school.  "Sometimes  I  have  seen  as  many  as  twenty 
children  come  into  the  store  at  once  to  be  fitted  out  with 
shoes,"  his  employer  has  said. 

While  we  know  that  he  was  the  almoner  of  the  generous 
gifts  of  others,  at  the  same  time  increasing  demands  were 
made  upon  his  time  and  money  by  the  growing  needs  of  his 
mission  work. 

After  spending  two  years  with  his  first  employer,  Mr.  Wis- 
wall,  he  entered  the  house  of  Mr.  C.  N.  Henderson,  who  had 
become  greatly  interested  in  Mr.  Moody  and  in  his  work  at 
the  mission.     He  now  became 

A  COMMERCIAL  TRAVELER 
but  no  matter  how  far  away  his  business  might  take  him  he 
was  sure  to  be  back  on  Sunday  for  his  work  at  the  mission. 


74  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

This  would  have  been  a  very  heavy  tax  on  his  income — as  the 
house  only  allowed  expenses  for  returning  once  a  month — 
but  for  a  pass  granted  him  through  the  kindness  of  his  friend, 
Colonel  Hammond,  superintendent  of  the  Chicago,  Burling- 
ton and  Quincy  Railroad.  This  gentleman  was  also  one  of 
that  noble  company  of  wealthy  men  who  rallied  to  the  help  of 
Mr.  Moody  at  the  mission,  glad  to  shake  themselves  loose  for 
a  time  from  the  routine  of  business  and  warm  their  hearts 
in  the  service  of  the  Master. 

Upon  the  death  of  Mr.  Henderson,  Moody  entered  the 
employ  of  the  house  of  Messrs.  Buel,  Hill  &  Granger,  but 
remained  with  them  only  about  a  year.  During  all  that  time 
he  was  becoming  more  and  more  a  missionary  and  less  and 
less  a  merchant,  until  by  degrees  he  came  to  be  so  full  of  his 
religious  work  as  to  lose  interest  in  everything  else.  The 
searching  experience  which  led  him  to  this  work  of  self  con- 
secration was  narrated  by  Mr.  Moody  some  years  later  in 
Chicago,  as  follows: 

'T  will  tell  you  how  I  got  my  first  impulse  in  this  personal 
work  for  souls.  I  hadn't  got  hold  of  the  idea;  there  was  no 
one  to  teach  me,  and  I  was  going  on  with  the  general  work 
of  my  school  in  i860,  when  a  man  who  was  one  of  my  Sunday 
school  teachers  came  into  my  place  of  business  one  day,  look- 
ing very  ill.  I  asked  him  what  was  the  matter,  and  he  replied 
T  have  been  bleeding  at  the  lungs  and  the  doctors  have  given 
me  up  to  die.'  'But  you  are  not  afraid  to  die,  are  you?'  'No, 
I  think  not,'  he  answered;  'but  there  is  my  class.  I  must 
leave  it,  and  there  is  not  one  of  them  converted.'  It  was  a 
class  of  young  girls  that  gave  me  more  trouble  than  any  other 
class  in  the  whole  school;  and  he  had  hard  work  to  get  along 
with  them.  'Well,'  said  I,  'can't  you  go  and  call  on  them 
before  you  go  away?'  'No,'  he  said;  he  was  too  weak  to  walk. 
So  I  went  and  got  a  carriage  and  took  him  round  to  see 
those  careless  scholars.  And  he  pleaded  with  them  and 
prayed  with  them  one  by  one,  to  give  their  hearts  to  Christ. 


BEGINS  TO  LIVE  BY  FAITH.  75 

He  spent  ten  days  at  this  work,  and  every  one  of  that  class 
was  saved. 

The  night  before  he  left  the  city  for  his  home  at  the  East, 
where  he  was  going  to  see  his  mother  and  to  die,  we  got  the 
teacher  and  the  class  together;  and  such  a  meeting  I  never  saw 
on  earth.  He  prayed  and  I  prayed;  and  then  the  scholars 
of  their  own  accord,  without  my  asking  them — I  didn't  know 
they  could  pray — prayed  for  their  teacher,  and  for  themselves 
that  they  might  all  be  kept  in  the  way  of  life,  and  by-and-by 
all  meet  again  in  heaven.  I  have  thanked  God  a  thousand 
times  for  those  ten  days  of  personal  work." 
GIVES  UP  BUSINESS. 

Soon  after  the  experience  of  these  ten  days  Mr.  Moody 
resigned  his  position  and  severed  his  connection  with  the 
world  of  business.  He  began  to  live  by  faith.  Following, 
as  he  believed,  the  leadings  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  he  gave  up  his 
long  cherished  hope  of  making  a  fortune  and  thenceforth 
devoted  himself  to  the  work  of  saving  souls. 

Meeting  him  one  day  soon  after  he  had  left  their  house, 
Mr.  Hill  said  to  him,  "Moody,  what  are  you  doing  now?" 

"I  am  at  work  for  Jesus  Christ,"  was  the  reply. 

"His  answer  shocked  me  a  little  at  first;  but  on  thinking  it 
over,  I  felt  that  it  was  a  fair  statement  of  the  facts  in  the  case. 
That  was  just  what  he  was  doing;  and  his  work  for  the  Lord 
was  just  as  real  and  as  vigorous  as  it  had  always  been  for  his 
other  employers.  He  left  our  house  under  the  pleasantest 
circumstances,  having  maintained  his  Christian  character  un- 
blemished, and  we  all  bade  him  God-speed  in  the  work  to 
which  we  believed  he  was  called." 

After  he  had  thus  turned  his  back  upon  business,  he  said 
to  his  friend,  Mr.  Jacobs:  "I  have  decided  to  give  God  all  my 
time." 

"But  how  are  you  going  to  live?"  inquired  his  friend. 

"God  will  provide  for  me,  if  he  wishes  me  to  keep  on,  and 
I  shall  keep  on  till  I  am  obliged  to  stop,"  was  Moody's  reply. 


76  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

Out  of  the  savings  of  the  last  few  years  he  took  one  thous- 
and dollars  for  his  first  year's  expenses  and  invested  the  re- 
mainder for  future  use.  He  now  felt  himself  to  be  the  hap- 
piest man  in  the  land.  He  was  rich,  and  he  was  free.  He 
could  now  devote  all  his  time  and  heart  and  strength  to  per- 
sonal work  for  Christ.  Week-days,  as  well  as  Sundays,  were 
all  consecrated  to  God.  His  resolution  to  wait  only  on  the 
Lord  was  never  broken.  From  that  day  until  the  day  of  his 
death  he 

NEVER  RECEIVED  A  SALARY 
from  any  individual,  society  or  church,  or  engaged  in  any 
speculation  or  business.  Sometimes  his  faith  was  sorely 
tried,  but  there  was  always  a  barley  cake  between  him  and 
starvation.  It  was  not  long  before  the  thousand  dollars 
which  had  seemed  so  much  were  used  up  by  the  mission  and 
in  relieving  the  misery  and  destitution  which  abounded  in  all 
that  district.  Somehow  the  little  balance  which  he  had  in- 
vested took  to  itself  wings  and  flew  away  like  Elijah's  ravens 
and  he  found  himself  alone  on  the  banks  of  a  dried-up  Cherith. 

Among  the  few  books  which  Mr.  Moody  had  read  was 
"Muller's  Life  of  Trust,"  and  by  it  he  was  helped  to  rely  on 
the  promise  "Trust  in  the  Lord  and  do  good;  so  shalt  thou 
dwell  in  the  land,  and  verily  thou  shalt  be  fed."  Instead  of 
going  to  Zarephath  to  find  some  widow  to  sustain  him,  he 
moved  his  residence,  that  is,  he  removed  himself  into  the 
quarters  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  in  a 
large  back  room  in  the  Methodist  Church  block.  It  was  go- 
ing back  to  earlier  experiences  when  he  "bunked"  in  the  store 
to  save  the  cost  of  lodgings;  only  now  he  didn't  even  have  a 
bunk  but  only  a  bench,  and  frequently  only  had  crackers  and 
cheese  for  his  dinner,  with  a  good  supply  of  lake  water.  He 
kept  his  affairs  to  himself.  He  worked  harder  than  ever,  col- 
lecting large  sums  of  money  for  the  poor,  for  the  mission  and 
the  works  of  charity  and  religion  carried  on  by  the  Associa- 
tion, but  would  not  touch  a  penny  of  such  funds  to  meet  his 
own  necessities. 


BEGINS  TO  LIVE  BY  FAITH.  ^^ 

The  Lord  knoweth  our  frame.  He  knows  just  when  faith 
has  been  stretched  to  its  utmost  tension.  Then  comes  reUef. 
As  Jesus  knew  the  weakness  of  Peter  and  said:  "I  have 
prayed  for  thee  that  thy  faith  fail  not" — so  does  he  ever  pray 
for  those  who  trust  Him. 

"Say  not,  my  soul,  from  whence  can  God  release  my  care; 
Remember  that  Omnipotence  hath  servants  everywhere. 
God's  wisdom  is  sublime;  His  heart  profoundly  kind; 
God  never  is  before  His  time  and  never  is  behind." 

Mr.  Moody  received  a  strong  confirmation  of  his  faith  in  a 
REMARKABLE  INSTANCE  OF  HEALING 
in  the  case  of  a  gentleman  associated  in  the  work  of  the  mis- 
sion. A  certain  Mr.  Field,  of  Wisconsin,  had  come  to  Chi- 
cago temporarily,  on  business.  Being  a  man  "full  of  faith 
and  of  the  Holy  Ghost"  he  became  a  valuable  helper  to  Mr. 
Moody,  connecting  himself  with  the  North  Market  School. 
For  many  years  he  had  been  lame  in  one  leg.  It  had  become 
stiff  and  crooked  and  he  was  obliged  to  walk  with  a  crutch  or 
a  cane.  Excessive  use  of  it,  searching  after  new  scholars — 
Moody  fashion — in  highways  and  byways,  aggravated  the  dis- 
ease and  he  began  to  suffer  great  pain  from  it;  so  much  indeed 
that  he  had  arranged  for  a  surgical  examination  on  the  follow- 
ing Monday. 

On  Sunday  it  was  noticed  that  Mr.  Field  came  to  the  school 
without  his  cane.  At  the  close  of  the  exercises  he  took  Mr. 
Moody  and  Mr.  Farwell  up  to  his  room,  bounding  up  stairs 
two  steps  at  a  time,  and  told  them  his  experience  as  follows: 

"You  know  how  lame  I  have  been,  and  that  my  leg  had  be- 
come so  painful  that  I  had  decided  to  go  to  a  doctor.  Last 
night  I  crept  out  to  the  nearest  bath-rooms,  and  returned  to 
bed  in  great  distress.  While  I  lay  there,  the  idea  seemed  im- 
pressed upon  me  that  the  Lord  could  cure  me  as  well  as  the 
doctor.  I  called  to  mind  how  He  healed  the  man  sick  with  the 
palsy;  and  I  said  to  myself,'  I  will  ask  Him  to  cure  me  in  the 
same  way.'     Committing  my  case  wholly  to  the  Lord,  I  soon 


78  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

fell  asleep;  and  dreamed  that  I  went  to  the  surgeon  as  he  had 
appointed,  and  that  he  cut  open  my  leg,  performed  some  oper- 
ation, and  immediately  closed  the  wound  again,  not  hurting 
me  in  the  least. 

"My  first  thought  on  awaking  in  the  morning  was  that  all 
the  pain  was  gone;  the  lame  leg  felt  strangely  well.  Throw- 
ing oflf  the  bedclothes,  I  was  astonished  to  find  it  straightened 
so  as  to  be  of  equal  length  with  the  other.  Leaping  from  the 
bed  I  found  that  I  could  use  it  with  freedom ;  and  remember- 
ing my  dream  I  began  to  praise  God  for  answering  my  prayer 
and  working  on  me  a  miracle  of  healing.*  *  *  *  And  I  have 
called  you  to  join  me  in  praising  God  who  is  able  to  save  peo- 
ple in  these  days  just  as  Jesus  did  in  the  days  of  his  flesh." 

"Since  then,"  said  Mr.  Farwell,  "He  walked  upon  two  good 
legs,  like  any  other  man;  and  the  shrunken  muscles,  by  means 
of  proper  exercise,  as  he  expected  returned  to  their  normal 
proportions." 

While  not  tending  to  make  Mr.  Moody  in  the  least  extrava- 
gant in  his  views  it  was  a  manifestation  of  God's  nearness, 
and  goodness,  and  power,  and  that  still  the  promises  held 
good — for  daily  bread  as  for  healing — and  springing  up  in 
his  own  renewed  faith  he  grasped  the  hand  of  the  Lord  with 
firmer  grip  than  ever. 

Presently  some  of  his  friends  began  to  inquire  secretly  as 
to  how  he  was  living  and  learning  of  the  bareness  of  his  board 
and  the  hardness  of  his  bed,  they  insisted  on  providing  him 
with  abundant  comforts  of  life.  The  Lord  evidently  still  had 
plenty  of  work  for  him  to  do. 

To  some  of  his  friends  who  blamed  him  for  neglecting  his 
own  personal,  worldly  interest  he  would  say,  "God  is  rich  and 
I  am  working  for  him." 

His  favorite  text  of  scripture  was,  "This  one  thing  I  do; 
forgetting  those  things  which  are  behind,  and  reaching  forth 
unto  those  things  which  are  before,  I  press  toward  the  mark, 
for  the  prize  of  the  high  calling  of  God  in  Christ  Jesus." 


Young  Men's  Christian  Association. 

'^^la^^OR  more  than  forty  years  the  Young  Men's  Chris- 
jMf  tian  Association  has  been  the  right  hand  of  the 
^^^Tjgj      church,  extended  to  welcome  all  young  men  who 

■  would  enter  her  doors.     As  we  have  already  stat- 

ed, the  Association  of  Chicago  was  born  out  of 
the  great  revival  of  1857-8,  and  the  dew  of  its  youth  and  the 
Spirit,  that  first  inspired  and  then  baptized  it,  have  been  its 
most  precious  endowments  unto  this  very  hour. 

Ten  years  after  its  organization  less  than  two  hundred  and 
fifty  societies  could  be  found  in  all  the  United  States;  but  to- 
day there  is  scarcely  a  town  of  any  importance  where  the 
9oors  do  not  swing  open  at  the  touch  of  a  stranger's  hand,  re- 
vealing the  light,  and  cheer,  and  rest,  and  help,  and  friend- 
ship that  await  him.  Fifty  years  ago  the  churches  were  doing 
their  work  in  the  regular  way,  with  their  Sabbath  services, 
Bible  schools,  and  prayer  meetings;  but  the  external  agencies 
for  reaching  the  careless  and  unconcerned,  the  stranger  and 
the  outcast,  were  comparatively  few  and  left  to  individual  ini- 
tiative. 

Free  libraries,  free  reading  rooms,  were  scarcely  known, 
while  the  Institutional  Church  had  not  even  been  dreamed  of. 
And  if  in  any  of  our  larger  towns  and  cities  the  Association 
seems  to  be  losing  somewhat  of  its  attractive  power,  it  may 
be  because  the  churches  are  becoming  Christian  Associations 
that  believe  in  working  seven  days  in  the  week,  instead  of 
one,  for  the  salvation  of  the  individual  and  the  uplifting  of  the 
masses.  Many  of  the  narrower  or  more  conservative  divines 
who  had  little  idea  that  the  churches  of  Christ  were  organized 
for  the  very  purpose  of  making  aggressive  warfare  against 
the  kingdoms  of  the  devil,  were  disposed  to  speak  contemp- 
tuously of  this  useless  fifth  wheel  to  the  gospel  chariot.  Our 
civil  war,  however,  proved  that  the  extra  wheel  every  caisson 


8o  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

had  to  carry  was  of  inestimable  value  to  the  safety  and  effec- 
tiveness of  a  battery  of  light  artillery.  Selfish  criticisms  were 
sometimes  heard  against  the  large  amounts  of  money  spent 
in  buildings,  equipment  and  maintenance,  which  might  have 
accomplished  so  much  more  good  if  poured  through  the  rou- 
tine channels  of  church  work.  It  is  a  suf^cient  answer  to  all 
such  captious  criticism  that  some  of  the  largest  hearted,  most 
devoted  Christian  men  to  be  found  in  our  churches  felt  that 
some  new  means  must  be  devised  to  overtake  some  part  of 
the  enormous  amount  of  work  still  left  undone. 

Looking  back  over  those  fateful  years  in  the  sixties,  it 
would  seem  as  if  God  was,  by  the  great  revival  of  1857-8,  pre- 
paring the  heart  of  the  nation  for  the  awful  sacrifice  of  war, 
and  by  the  organization  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Associ- 
ation training  young  men  who  might  render  most  valuable 
assistance  in  ministering  comfort  and  consolation  to  the  sick 
and  the  dying. 

When  Mr.  Moody  cut  loose  from  business  that  he  might 
spend  all  his  time  in  working  for  Jesus  Christ,  his  heart  was 
already  taking  in 

A  SECOND  LOVE. 

From  its  beginning  he  had  given  to  the  Association  a  large 
measure  of  his  devotion  and  zeal.  Now  that  his  time  was  all 
his  own  for  Christly  service,  he  had  been  appointed  chairman 
of  the  visiting  committee  to  the  sick  and  to  strangers,  for 
which  he  was  so  peculiarly  well  fitted.  Chicago  was  a  city  of 
great  distances.  From  the  Lake  shore  the  streets  ran  in 
every  direction  until  they  vanished  in  the  boundless  prairies. 
The  city  was  his  parish.  The  missionary  pony  was  a  necessi- 
ty if  he  was  ever  to  visit  his  field,  and  one  was  bought  out  of 
the  vanishing  remnant  of  that  thousand  dollars,  not  to  divide 
his  labors  but  to  multiply  them — as  the  pony  had  four  legs  to 
his  two. 

An  old  resident  on  the  Northside  who  was  familiar  with 


YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION.  8i 

him  in  those  clays,  declares  that  he  would  chase  the  small  fry 
up  the  streets  and  down  the  alleys,  and  after  a  Sunday  morn- 
ing's search  for  new  scholars,  would  emerge  from  some  dirty 
lane,  or  court,  his  pony  literally  covered  with  ragged  urchins, 
followed  by  other  of  the  same  sort,  holding  on  by  the  pony's 
tail,  catching  by  the  stirrups,  or  clinging  to  each  other's  rags; 
and  these  he  would  march  in  grand  procession  down  to  the 
North  Market  Sunday  school. 

Mr.  S.  A.  Kean,  for  many  years  treasurer  of  the  Chicago 
Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  speaking  of  those  days, 
said: 

"Moody  found  a  congenial  field  of  labor  in  the  Association. 
When  we  joined  it  had  but  a  few  members;  and,  though  it  was 
called  a  young  men's  association;  it  was  composed  and  man- 
aged almost  entirely  by  middle-aged,  or  elderly  men.  As  a 
consequence,  its  methods  and  policy  were  quiet  and  conserva- 
tive. Moody's  advent  among  them  was  like  a  stiff  northwest 
breeze.  His  zeal  and  devotion  were  the  life  and  the  hope  of 
the  Association.  But  he  shocked  the  nice  sense  of  propriety 
of  some  of  these  gentlemen  by  carrying  its  work  among  a 
class  of  people  who  had  hitherto  been  neglected,  under  the 
impression  that  its  proper  Hne  of  effort  was  among  the  higher 
classes  of  young  men. 

"Under  Moody's  leadership  the  Association  became,  hke 
the  North  Market  Mission,  a  free  and  popular  institution — 
extending  its  influence  to  all  classes  of  society,  and  bringing 
the  cultured  and  wealthy  to  the  assistance  of  the  ignorant  and 
the  poor. 

"Mr.  Moody  was  always  fertile  in  schemes  and  expedients 
for  raising  money  for  the  Lord's  work,  but  of  the  many  tens 
of  thousands  of  dollars  w^hich  he  secured  for  the  Association, 
he  received  nothing  whatever  for  himself. 

"He  always  refused  a  salary,  saying  it  would  embarrass 
him  and  Hmit  his  freedom  to  go  at  a  moment's  notice  wher- 
ever the  Lord  might  call  him.     I  was  treasurer  of  the  Associ- 

6 


82  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

ation  from  the  time  of  his  first  connection  with  it,  and  I  do  not 
remember  (he  spoke  from  memory,  as  all  the  books  were 
burned  in  the  great  fire)  to  have  paid  him  a  dollar,  either  for 
his  services  or  the  expenses  incidental  to  his  work.  Neither 
do  I  remember  any  appropriation  being  made  for  his  assis- 
tance, though  he  often  needed  and  always  deserved  it." 

Mr.  Moody  soon  became  the  acknowledged  chief  in  the  de- 
partment of  city  mission  work.  He  arranged  that  each  mis- 
sion school  should  be  visited  by  and  make  reports  to  the  As- 
sociation. He  also  endeavored  to  have  each  mission  taken 
under  the  care  and  patronage  of  some  strong  and  wealthy 
church.  By  this  means  the  missions  were  strengthened,  the 
young  people  given  opportunity  for  personal  service  and  the 
churches  themselves  roused  and  stimulated  to  greater  activi- 
ty in  every  department  of  their  work. 

Under  his  inspiring  leadership  a  great  deal  of  lay  talent 
was  brought  into  use  and  vastly  multiplied.  Some  one  has 
said  that  the  Lord  only  gave  Mr.  Moody  a  half  of  a  talent,  but 
by  diligent  use  he  became  the  greatest  soul  winner  in  the 
world.  The  success  of  the  Association  even  at  that  day,  in 
bringing  into  the  Kingdom  large  numbers  of  persons  who 
had  seemed  to  be  utterly  reprobate,  caused  the  greatest  as- 
tonishment. It  became  a  blessing  to  all  the  evangelical 
churches  in  the  city  and  soon  commanded  the  confidence  and 
co-operation  of  almost  the  entire  Christian  community. 

The  first  year's  report  of  the  committee  of  visitation,  of 
which  Mr.  Moody  was  chairman,  gives  the  number  of  families 
visited  as  554,  and  the  amount  of  money  used  in  their  relief  as 
$2,350.  The  spiritual  results,  the  souls  comforted,  the  hearts 
won  to  the  love  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  the  Book  of  Life  to  be 
opened  at  the  last  day  can  alone  reveal;  but  it  is  safe  to  say 
that  Mr.  Moody  was  at  that  time  the  minister  of  Christ  to 
more  bodies  and  souls  than  any  ordained  clergyman  in  the 
city.  The  missions  were  all  active  and  thriving.  The  poor 
had  the  gospel  preached  unto  them — often  in  spite  of  them- 


YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION.  83 

selves.  The  noon  prayer  meeting,  "though  not  always  select, 
was  generally  forcible,"  and  the  manifest  blessing  of  God 
rested  on  the  man  whose  faith  and  zeal  had  roused  a  vast 
Christian  brotherhood  to  realize  their  power  and  privilege  as 
believers  in  Christ,  and  set  them  to  work. 

CAMP  AND  FIELD. 

General  Sherman  once  said:  "War  is  hell."  It  must  be  a 
most  righteous  cause  indeed  that  can  justify  an  appeal  to 
arms.  When  the  "dogs  of  war"  are  let  loose  and  the  aid  of 
the  "God  of  battles"  is  invoked,  it  is  not  the  immediate  issue 
of  a  battle,  nor  of  a  campaign,  nor  even  the  terms  of  peace 
that  can  unerringly  point  out  the  side  "whereon  the  right  doth 
lie."  It  may  require  the  passing  of  many  years  or  even  cen- 
turies before  men  may  begin  to  read  with  any  certainty  what 
were  the  hidden  purposes  of  an  over-ruling  providence. 

In  i860  the  United  States  was  approaching  the  days  of  a 
tremendous  struggle.  It  has  been  said  that  the  famous 
"House-divided-against-itself"  speech  of  Abraham  Lincoln 
delivered  in  the  hall  of  the  House  of  Representatives 
at  Springfield,  Illinois,  on  the  seventeenth  day  of  June, 
1858,  secured  for  him  the  nomination  for  the  presi- 
dency. In  that  speech  he  said:  "I  believe  this  gov- 
ernment cannot  endure  permanently  half  slave  and  half  free. 
I  do  not  expect  the  house  to  fall,  but  I  do  expect  it  will  cease 
to  be  divided."  His  election  hastened  the  hour,  and  his  in- 
auguration precipitated  the  "Irrepressible  Conflict."  On  the 
14th  day  of  April,  1861,  the  first  gun  was  fired  on  Fort  Sum- 
ter, and  on  the  15th  the  proclamation  was  issued  calling  for 
seventy-five  thousand  men. 

Then  came  quickly  the  call  for  three  hundred  thousand 
more,  and  the  four  long  and  bitter  and  terrible  years  of  war 
to  preserve  the  integrity  of  the  American  Union  and  deliver 
it  from  the  curse  of  slavery,  had  begun. 

No  one  who  has  lived  "through  those  years  of  sorrow,  suf- 


84  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

fering  and  sacrifice,  can  ever  forget  the  magnificent  uprising 
of  the  people  at  the  call  of  patriotism  and  duty.  The  war 
afforded  the  occasion  also  for  the  manifestation  of  the  most 
remarkable  Christian  heroism  and  devotion  that  Christendom 
has  ever  witnessed,  whereby  many  thousands  of  sick  and 
wounded  soldiers  were  saved  from  death,  thousands  re- 
deemed from  the  power  of  the  temptations  and  vices  of  the 
camp,  and  many  brought  into  the  kingdom  of  God  from  the 
very  edge  of  the  grave. 

ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN  COMMISSION 

The  annals  of  the  Christian  Commission  will  remain,  per- 
haps forever,  as  the  noblest  record  of  what  the  power  of  the 
Spirit  of  Christ  can  accomplish  among  men.  Thousands  of 
Christian  men  and  women,  inspired  by  the  example  of  Him 
"who  came  not  to  be  ministered  unto,  but  to  minister,"  were 
found  everywhere,  both  in  camp  and  on  the  battlefield, 
in  hospitals  and  in  the  prisons,  like  good  angels  go- 
ing wherever  there  was  need  that  they  could  reach, 
and  ministering  alike  to  the  sufifering  of  the  "boys  in  blue" 
and  the  "boys  in  gray."  In  the  midst  of  all  the  horrors  of 
war,  where  the  harvests  of  death  were  constantly  ripening, 
God  was  working  through  these  devoted  servants  miracles  of 
mercy,  and  miracles  of  grace,  the  like  of  which  had  never  been 
seen  before. 

We  are  sure  our  readers  will  appreciate  the  insertion  of  a 
leaf  or  two  out  of  these  records  regarding  the  organization  of 
the  Christian  Commission. 

The  great  revivals  which  had  preceded  the  civil  war  had 
prepared  many  of  the  young  men  of  the  country  to  carry 
their  religion  with  tHem  into  the  camps  as  they  responded  to 
the  call  for  three  hundred  thousand  men. 

The  Christian  Associations  in  Washington,  Philadelphia 
and  Chicago,  and  other  cities,  were  all  busy  in  their  own  way 
looking  after  the  spiritual  interests  of  the  soldiers,  but  there 


YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION.  85 

had  as  yet  been  no  united  effort  on  their  behalf.  Many  Chris- 
tian gentlemen  felt  that  they  should  combine,  in  some  meas- 
ure, efforts  for  their  temporal  welfare  with  those  for  their  spir- 
itual, beUeving,  as  Mr.  George  H.  Stuart  very  sensibly  said: 
"There  is  a  good  deal  of  religion  in  a  warm  shirt  and  a  good 
beef  steak."  Accordingly,  the  International  Committee  of 
the  Young  Men's  Christian  xA-ssociation,  of  which  Mr.  George 
H.  Stuart  was  chairman,  and  Mr.  John  Wanamaker,  secre- 
tary, called  an  informal  convention  of  the  American  Associa- 
tions to  meet  in  New  York  on  the  14th  of  November,  1861. 

The  following  resolution  was  adopted  unanimously:  "That 
it  is  the  duty  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  to 
take  active  measures  to  promote  the  spiritual  and  temporal 
welfare  of  the  soldiers  in  the  army,  and  the  sailors  and 
marines  in  the  navy,  in  co-operation  with  the  chaplains  and 
others.  Also  that  a  Christian  Commission,  consisting  of 
twelve  members,  who  shall  serve  gratuitously,  and  who  may 
fill  their  own  vacancies,  be  appointed  to  take  charge  of  the 
whole  work." 

Of  this  Commission  Mr.  George  H.  Stuart  was  chosen 
president.  He  has  said  that  he  considered  it  the  most  im- 
portant position  he  ever  filled,  as  it  introduced  him  into  what 
he  ever  after  regarded  as  the  great  work  of  his  life. 

Of  this  Commission  Mr.  John  V.  Farwell,  of  Chicago,  was 
a  member. 

In  January,  1862,  the  executive  committee  of  the  Commis- 
sion issued  an  address  setting  forth  the  great  needs  of  the 
army,  and  the  work  which  had  been  committed  to  their  care. 
The  address  stated  that  there  were  seven  hundred  thousand 
men  in  the  army  and  navy  who  had  left  the  comforts  of  home 
to  endure  hardships,  and  many  of  them  to  die,  for  their  coun- 
try, and  appealing  urgently  for  means  to  minister  to  their 
temporal  and  spiritual  welfare.  But  it  was  not  until  May  14, 
1862,  that  their  first  delegate  was  commissioned,  and  their 
special  work  fairly  begun. 


86  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

The  government  gave  the  Commission  every  facility  possi- 
ble for  carrying  on  their  work  in  the  camps,  in  the  hospitals, 
or  on  the  battlefields.  All  the  railroads  applied  to  endorsed 
the  printed  commission  that  was  given  to  their  delegates,  fur- 
nishing transportation  free  of  charge;  they  also  carried  all 
their  stores  and  publications,  and  supplies  of  every  sort,  free 
of  charge.  All  telegraph  lines  also  in  the  country  were  freely 
placed  at  their  disposal.  No  matter  how  long  a  despatch  was, 
if  it  bore  the  signature  of  George  H.  Stuart,  it  was  marked 
D.  H.  (Deadhead).  We  will  only  take  space  to  narrate  a 
single  instance  of  the  character  and  rapidity  of  their  work. 
We  find  it  in  the  life  of  George  H.  Stuart: 

"We  were  often  obliged,"  he  writes,  "to  use  these  wires  in 
great  emergencies  to  raise  money;  as  in  the  case  of 
THE  BATTLE  OF  GETTYSBURG, 
when  I  found  that  our  treasury  was  largely  overdrawn,  while 
over  twenty  thousand  wounded  soldiers  of  both  armies  had 
been  left  on  the  battle-field,  to  whom  we  speedily  sent  three 
hundred  and  fifty-six  delegates,  with  nearly  a  hundred  thous- 
and dollars  worth  of  stores.  Before  starting  for  the  field 
myself,  I  drew  up  a  long  despatch,  to  be  sent  to  the  leading 
cities,  stating  the  facts  and  asking  for  the  privilege  of  draw- 
ing for  different  amounts.  Boston,  I  asked  for  ten  thousand 
dollars;  and  the  response  came  back  the  same  day,  'Draw  for 
sixty  thousand.'  " 

It  was  in  the  work  of  the  Christian  Commission  that  Mr. 
Moody,  so  well  known  in  Chicago,  was  brought  more  prom- 
inently before  the  notice  of  the  public.  At  the  outbreak  of 
the  war,  Mr.  Moody,  as  chairman  of  the  devotional  commit- 
tee of  the  Christian  Association,  found  their  opportunities 
for  doing  good  vastly  increased.  A  large  camp  of  rendez- 
vous and  instruction  was  formed  in  the  southern  part  of  the 
city,  called 

CAMP  DOUGLAS. 
With  the  arrival  of  the  very  first  regiment,  the  conmiittee 


YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION.  87 

were  there  and  a  religious  service  was  held.  Public  worship 
and  prayer  meetings  were  everywhere  established  within  easy 
reach  of  the  soldiers.  The  zeal  and  devotion  of  the  Chris- 
tian soldiers  were  thus  stimulated  at  the  very  outset  and  they 
were  encouraged  and  helped  to  take  a  bold  stand  for  Christ, 
and  not  be  ashamed  of  His  name. 

Very  soon  Mr.  Moody  was  the  leader  of  a  well  organized 
band  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  Christian  workers,  who  were 
carrying  the  gospel  news  from  camp  to  camp,  and  from  tent 
to  tent  with  all  the  ardor  and  tenderness  of  brotherly  affec- 
tion. By  his  efforts  a  Y.  M.  C.  A.  chapel  was  erected  at  Camp 
Douglas,  at  a  cost  of  $2,300,  in  October  1861 — the  first  camp 
chapel  in  existence.  Over  fifteen  hundred  of  these  services 
were  held  in  and  around  Chicago  by  the  Association  during 
the  war.     Of  these  meetings  Mr.  Jacobs  has  said: 

"Mr.  Moody  seemed  almost  ubiquitous.  He  would  has- 
ten from  one  barrack  and  camp  to  another,  day  and  night, 
week  days  and  Sundays,  praying,  exhorting,  conversing  per- 
sonally with  the  men  about  their  souls,  and  revelling  in  the 
abundant  work  and  swift  success  which  the  war  had  brought 
within  his  reach." 

Many  of  the  soldier  converts  having  been  sent  to  the  front 
in  Kentucky,  they  made  most  earnest  appeals  that  Mr. 
Moody  would  come  down  and  establish  similar  meetings  in 
their  war  camps.  In  response  to  their  repeated  calls  Mr. 
Moody  was  sent  to  the  army  near  Fort  Donelson,  having  the 
honor  of  being  the  first  regular  army  delegate  from  Chicago, 
if  not  the  first  from  any  Association. 

Mr.  J.  V.  Farwell  was  made  chairman  of  Mr.  Moody's  war 
committee.  When  news  arrived  of  the  fall  of  Fort  Donelson, 
February  15th,  1862,  a  special  committee  of  relief  was  sent 
with  Mr.  Moody  to  the  field,  and  with  them  went  many  others 
eager  to  minister  to  the  sick,  the  wounded,  and  the  dying. 
On  the  way  up  the  river  from  Cairo  a  discussion  arose  as  to 
the  most  efficient  way  of  doing  the  great  work  lying  before 


88  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

them.  Mr.  Moody,  full  of  the  idea  of  saving  souls,  urged 
that  the  first  business  in  every  case  was  to  find  whether  the 
sick  or  dying  man  were  a  child  of  God;  if  he  were,  then  with 
a  word  of  prayer  they  were  to  pass  on  to  the  next;  but  if  not, 
he  was  to  be  pointed  at  once  to  the  Savior. 

Robert  Collyer,  a  Unitarian  divine,  declared  that  the  first 
comforts  to  be  administered  to  these  men  who  were  ready  to 
perish,  were  whiskey,  brandy,  milk  punch,  and  the  like. 
"Brace  up  the  nerves  of  the  poor  fellows,"  said  he,  "and  help 
to  keep  them  alive,  rather  than  begin  trying  to  prepare  them 
for  death." 

Another  minister  thought  that  both  were  right,  and  both 
were  wrong.  They  ought  to  do  both  according  to  circum- 
stances, though  agreeing  with  Mr.  Moody,  if  the  poor  fellow 
were  actually  dying,  he  should  at  once  be  told  the  story  of 
the  thief  on  the  cross. 

Mr.  Collyer  was  on  his  feet  in  a  moment.  "What!"  said 
he,  "are  we  to  tell  our  dying  heroes,  who  have  gone  forth  to 
fight  our  battles  and  save  our  flag,  while  we  stay  comforta- 
bly at  home,  are  we  to  talk  to  them  about  thieves?" 

The  applause  that  greeted  this  speech  showed  where  were 
the  sympathies  of  the  crowd,  who  had  gathered  about  them. 
There  is  a  very  wide  belief  or  feeling,  at  least,  that  "Christ 
isn't  going  to  be  hard  on  one  who  has  died  for  his  fellow- 
men."  That  to  die  for  one's  country  is  a  quick  and  sure  way 
of  getting  to  heaven. 

The  Crusaders  went  forth  to  battle  for  the  possession  of 
the  Holy  Sepulchre  under  the  blessing  of  the  Pope,  who 
promised  deliverance  from  all  the  pains  of  purgatory  and  im- 
mediate entrance  into  heaven  to  all  who  fell  in  battle  or  by 
the  way.  They  went  out  to  meet  their  Moslem  foe,  who  were 
equally  fanatical,  believing  that  "Paradise  lies  under  the  sha- 
dow of  the  sword."  But  the  wide  experience  of  Christian 
men  ministering  on  many  a  battle  field  bears  universal  testi- 
mony that  Mr.  Moody  was  right.     No  dying  soldier  was  ever 


YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION.  89 

enabled  to  rejoice  in  a  sure    hope    of    eternal    life,    except 
through  faith  in  the  crucified  Redeemer. 

In  the  presence  of  men  whose  names  were  already  entered 
on  the  roll  call  of  death,  with  but  a  few  hours  or  moments  to 
live,  Mr.  Moody  was  to  learn,  under  the  teaching  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  how  most  effectively  and  speedily  to  point  their 
anxious  hearts,  their  longing  eyes  unto  the  Lamb  of  God  that 
taketh  away  the  sins  of  the  world.  His  addresses  often  con- 
tain allusions  to  scenes  of  army  life,  and  among  them  occurs 
this 

STORY  OF  A  DYING  SOLDIER. 

"After  one  of  our  terrible  battles — I  was  in  the  army,  at- 
tending soldiers — I  had  just  lain  down  one  night,  past  mid- 
night, to  get  a  little  rest,  when  a  man  came  and  told  me  that 
a  wounded  soldier  wanted  to  see  me.  I  went  to  the  dying 
man.  He  said,  'I  wish  you  to  help  me  to  die!'  I  said:  'I 
would  help  you  to  die  if  I  could.  I  would  take  you  on  my 
shoulders  and  carry  you  into  the  kingdom  of  God,  if  I  could, 
but  I  cannot.  I  can  tell  you  of  one  that  can.'  And  I  told 
him  of  Christ  being  willing  to  save  him;  and  how  Christ  left 
heaven  and  came  into  the  world  to  seek  and  to  save  that 
which  was  lost.  I  just  quoted  promise  after  promise,  but  all 
was  dark,  and  it  almost  seemed  as  if  the  shades  of  death  were 
gathering  around  his  soul.  I  could  not  leave  him,  and  at  last 
I  thought  of  the  third  chapter  of  John,  and  I  said  to  him: 
'Look  here,  I  am  going  to  read  to  you  now  a  conversation 
that  Christ  had  with  a  man  that  went  to  him  when  he  was  in 
your  state  of  mind,  and  inquired  what  he  was  to  do  to  be 
saved.'  I  just  read  that  conversation  to  the  dying  man,  and 
he  lay  there  with  his  eyes  riveted  upon  me,  and  every  word 
seemed  to  be  going  home  to  his  heart,  which  was  open  to 
receive  the  truth. 

"When  I  came  to  the  verse  where  it  says :  'As  Moses  lifted 
up  the  serpent  in  the  wilderness,  even  so  must  the  Son  of 
man  be  lifted  up:  that  whosoever  believeth  in  him  should  not 


go  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

perish,  but  have  eternal  Hfe,'  the  dying  man  cried:  'Stop,  sir, 
is  that  there?'  'Yes,  it  is  all  here.'  Then  he  said,  'Won't  you 
please  read  it  to  me  again?'  I  read  it  the  second  time.  The 
dying  man  brought  his  hands  together,  and  he  said:  'Bless 
God  for  that!  vVon't  you  please  read  it  to  me  again?'  I 
read  through  the  whole  chapter,  but  long  before  the  end  of 
it  he  had  closed  his  eyes.  He  seemed  to  lose  all  interest  in 
the  rest  of  the  chapter,  and  when  I  got  through  it  his  arms 
were  folded  on  his  breast.  He  had  a  sweet  smile  on  his  face; 
remorse  and  despair  had  fled  away.  His  lips  were  quivering, 
and  I  leant  over  him,  and  heard  him  faintly  whisper  from  his 
dying  lips:  'As  Moses  lifted  up  the  serpent  in  the  wilderness, 
even  so  must  the  Son  of  man  be  lifted  up;  that  whosoever 
believeth  in  him  should  not  perish,  but  have  eternal  life.'  He 
opened  his  eyes  and  fixed  his  calm,  deathly  look  on  me,  and 
said,  'O  that  is  enough !  that  is  all  I  want.'  And  he  pillowed 
his  dying  head  upon  the  trust  of  those  two  verses,  and  in  a 
few  hours  rode  away  on  one  of  the  Savior's  chariots  and  took 
his  seat  in  the  Kingdom  of  God." 

One  of  the  Christian  Commissioners  gives  the  following 
instance  of  another  kind  of 

ANSWER  TO  PRAYER. 

"A  party  of  our  men  found  themselves  one  night  on  a  bat- 
tlefield, in  charge  of  a  great  many  wounded  soldiers,  who, 
by  reason  of  the  sudden  retreat  of  the  army,  were  left  wholly 
without  shelter  or  supplies.  Having  done  their  best  for  the 
poor  fellows — bringing  them  water  from  a  distant  brook,  and 
searching  the  haversacks  of  the  dead  for  rations — they  be- 
gan to  say  to  themselves,  and  to  one  another,  'These  weak 
and  wounded  men  must  have  food,  or  they  will  die.  The  army 
is  out  of  reach,  and  there  is  no  village  for  many  miles;  what 
are  we  to  do?'     'Pray  to  God  to  send  us  bread,'  said  one. 

"That  night,  in  the  midst  of  the  dead  and  dying,  they  held 
a  little  prayer  meeting,  telling  the  Lord  all  about  the  case,  and 
begging  Him  to  send  them  bread  immediately;  though  from 


YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION.  91 

whence  it  could  come  they  had  not  the  most  remote  idea.  All 
night  long  they  plied  their  work  of  mercy.  With  the  first 
ray  of  dawn  the  sound  of  an  approaching  wagon  caught  their 
ears,  and  presently,  through  the  mists  of  the  morning,  ap- 
peared a  great  Dutch  farm  wagon,  piled  to  the  very  top  with 
loaves  of  bread.  On  their  asking  the  driver  where  he  came 
from,  and  who  sent  him,  he  replied: 

"When  I  went  to  bed  last  night  I  knew  that  the  army  was 
gone,  and  I  could  not  sleep  for  thinking  of  the  poor  fellows 
who  always  have  to  stay  behind.  Something  seemed  to  say 
to  me,  'What  will  those  poor  fellows  do  for  something  to  eat?' 
Tt  came  to  me  so  strong  that  I  waked  up  my  old  wife,  and 
told  her  what  was  the  matter.  We  had  only  a  little  bread  in 
the  house,  and  while  my  wife  was  making  some  more  I  took 
my  team  and  went  around  to  all  my  neighbors,  making  them 
get  up  and  give  me  all  the  bread  in  their  houses,  telling  them 
it  was  for  the  wounded  soldiers  on  the  battlefield.  When  1 
got  home  my  wagon  was  full;  my  old  wife  piled  her  baking  on 
the  top,  and  I  started  ofif  to  bring  the  bread  to  the  boys,  feel- 
ing just  as  if  the  Lord  Himself  were  sending  me.'  " 

Is  it  any  wonder  that  men  who  were  working  so  constantly 
amid  such  scenes,  and  with  such  experiences  as  these,  should 
have  become  bold  to  claim  the  promises?  Any  wonder  that 
they  seemed  to  come  into  terms  of  holy  intimacy  with  God, 
and  pleaded  with  the  Lord  as  with  a  most  personal  friend?  Is 
it  strange  that  their  faith  in  the  simple  words  of  the  gospel  ol 
the  grace  of  God  should  increase  mightily,  as  they  saw  so 
many  precious  souls  go  sweeping  through  the  gates  in  glo- 
rious triumph? 

As  reports  of  these  wonders  of  grace  wrought  in  the  field 
and  camp,  were  made  by  Mr.  Moody  and  his  co-laborers  on 
their  return  from  frequent  excursions  to  the  front,  the  Chica- 
go noon-day  prayer  meetings  became  intensely  interesting. 
They  became  in  fact  the  very  heart  and  center  of  the  religious 
Hfe  of  the  whole  northwest.     Requests  for  prayer  came  pour- 


92  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

ing  in  by  the  thousands,  followed  by  tidings  of  gracious  an- 
swers received,  and  sometimes  with  gifts  of  money  and  sup- 
plies for  helping  on  the  work  of  the  Commission. 
While  Mr.  Moody  was  often  among 

THE  FIRST  TO  THE  FRONT 

after  such  battles  as  those  at  Pittsburg  Landing,  Shiloh, 
Murfreesboro,  Chattanooga,  his  greatest  works  were  being 
carried  on  in  Chicago.  His  North  Market  Mission,  the  Chris- 
tian Association,  and  Camp  Douglas — now  transformed  into 
a  prison  for  captured  rebels — divided  his  time,  but  only  multi- 
plied his  energies  and  devotion. 

A  great  revival  under  Moody's  preaching  took  place 
among  the  ten  thousand  prisoners  confined  there.  Meetings 
were  held  every  afternoon  and  evening,  and  great  excitement 
was  produced  throughout  the  city.  The  tidings  went  far  and 
wide.  These  boys  in  gray  became  brothers  in  Christ,  and 
"when  their  time  came  to  be  exchanged,  they  went  to  their 
southern  homes  thanking  God  for  their  bonds,  in  which  His 
servants  had  found  them,  and  where  they,  though  prisoners  of 
war,  had  found  peace  and  liberty  in  the  Savior." 

Mr.  Moody  was  privileged  to  enter  Richmond  with  the 
army  of  General  Grant,  and  many  of  the  scenes  he  there  wit- 
nessed have  been  used  to  illustrate  the  work  of  Christ  as  a  de- 
liverer. We  can  not  more  fittingly  close  this  chapter  than  by 
giving  the  following  incident  as  he  was  wont  to  relate  it: 

''We  had  been  in  Richmond  but  a  few  hours  before  I  heard 
that  the  colored  people  were  going  to  have 

A  PUBLIC  MEETING 

down  in  the  great  African  church  that  night,  and  I  thought  to 
myself,  although  I  am  a  white  man,  I  will  get  in  there  some- 
how. I  had  a  hard  fight  to  get  in,  but  I  did  succeed  at  last. 
It  was  probably  the  largest  church  in  the  south.  There  were 
supposed  to  be  three  or  four  thousand  black  people  there,  and 
they  had  some  chaplains  of  our  northern  regiments  for  their 


YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION.  93 

orators  on  the  occasion.  Talk  about  eloquence!  I  never 
heard  better.  It  seemed  as  if  they  were  raised  up  for  the 
occasion.  I  remember  one  of  them,  as  he  stood  there  on  the 
platform,  pointed  down  to  the  mothers  and  said:  'Mothers, 
you  rejoice  to-day  that  you  are  forever  free,  all  your  posterity 
is  free;  that  little  child  has  been  taken  from  your  bosom  and 
sold  to  some  distant  state  for  the  last  time.'  And  some  of 
those  women  shouted  right  out  in  meeting,  'Glory  to  God!' 
They  couldn't  keep  the  good  news  to  themselves.  They  be- 
lieved they  were  delivered.     They  believed  the  good  news. 

"Then  this  man  turned  to  the  young  men  and  said:  'Young 
men,  rejoice  to-day!  It  is  a  day  of  jubilee,  a  day  of  glad  tid- 
ings. We  come  to  proclaim  to  you  that  you  are  free.  You 
have  heard  the  crack  of  the  slave-traders'  whip  for  the  last 
time.'  And  they  shouted  and  clapped  their  hands,  and  said, 
'Glory  to  God.'  Then  he  turned  to  the  young  women  and  said : 
'Rejoice  to-day!  You  have  been  on  the  auction  block  and  sold 
into  captivity  for  the  last  time.'  And  then  they  clapped  their 
hands  and  shouted  for  joy.  It  was  a  jubilee.  What  made 
them  so  glad?  They  believed  they  were  liberated  and  that  is 
what  made  them  so  joyful.  People  want  to  know  why  Chris- 
tians are  so  joyful.  It  is  because  they  have  been  delivered 
from  the  power  of  Satan." 


Builds  His  First  Church. 

HOSE  four  long  years  of  dreadful  war  were  also 
years  of  great  spiritual  power  over  all  the  land. 
There  was  scarcely  a  group  of  soldier  boys  from 
the  country  cross  roads,  or  company  from  the 
town,  or  regiment  from  the  city,  that  did  not  start 
as  it  were  from  beneath  the  very  shadow  of  the  cross.  What 
earnest,  living  words  were  spoken  in  those  last  services; 
words  of  warning  and  entreaty,  words  of  inspiration  and  hope; 
and  mingling  with  the  suppressed  sobs  of  wives  and  mothers, 
and  gaspings  for  breath  on  the  part  of  strong  men,  were  the 
closing  words  of  prayer  commending  the  departing  soldiers 
to  the  loving  care  and  the  great  mercy  of  God.  The  coldest, 
hardest  hearts  would  grow  tender,  and  eyes  unused  to  weep 
would  fill  with  tears  as  the  compassion  and  love  of  God  were 
invoked  for  those  who  were  suffering  in  prison  or  In  hospital, 
in  camp  or  on  the  field;  and  men  who  forgot  to  pray  for  them- 
selves, would  respond  with  earnest  and  sincere,  though  silent, 
"Amens."     By  the  side  of  every  preacher  of  the  gospel  to 

"BOYS  IN  BLUE,"  OR  "BOYS  IN  GRAY," 

death  seemed  to  stand,  pointing  with  skeleton  finger  to  the 
yawning  graves  on  every  battlefield,  and  saying,  "Do  thou 
shoot  God's  arrows  and  I'll  shoot  mine."  What  was  to  be 
done  had  to  be  done  quickly  and  tenderly;  and  for  that  work, 
as  we  have  seen,  hundreds  of  Christian  men  and  Christian 
women  had  gone  forth  in  the  name  and  in  the  strength  of  the 
Lord  Jesus. 

Mr.  Moody  often  used  to  say  that  he  would  much  rather 
get  ten  men  to  work  than  to  do  the  work  of  ten  men;  yet  in 
all  his  herculean  labors  among  and  for  the  soldiers,  he  was  not 
only  doing  the  work  of  ten  men,  but  was  also  inspiring  and 
dh"ecting  the  labors  of  hundreds  more,  while  with  all  his  mar- 


BUILDS  HIS  FIRST  CHURCH.  95 

vclous  and  untiring  energy  he  thus  wrought — happiest  when 
he  had  the  most  to  do —  Mr.  Moody  had  not  lost  the  power 
of  his  first  love.  His  North  Market  Mission  still  occupied  the 
first  place  in  his  thought  and  life. 

Beneath  the  overshadowing  presence  of  God,  which  was 
felt  throughout  the  land,  special  blessings  attended  the  work 
on  the  North  Side.  The  school  had  crowded  hard  the  capa- 
city of  the  North  Market  Hall,  and  in  the  very  midst  of  the 
war,  1862-3,  Mr.  Moody  set  to  work  to  raise  money  to  build 
A  MISSION  CHAPEL. 

In  1863  a  very  commodious  building  was  erected  not  far 
from  the  old  market  on  Illinois  street,  at  a  cost  of  about 
$20,000.  The  regular  attendance  at  the  school  was  now 
something  like  one  thousand,  with  about  a  thousand  others 
passing  through  it  every  year.  Among  these  there  was  a 
large  nucleus  for  a  permanent  congregation.  Between  three 
and  four  hundred  persons  had  become  converted,  and  needed 
pastoral  oversight.  They  needed  also  the  training  and  de- 
velopment of  Christian  character,  which  can  only  be  gained 
under  the  discipline  and  responsibilities  of  a  regular  church 
organization. 

The  history  during  the  last  forty  years  of  the  rise,  growth 
and  permanent  usefulness  of  Mission  schools  proves  the  wis- 
dom of  the  decision  to  which  Mr.  Moody  was  led  or  driven 
by  the  very  logic  of  events.  A  strong  hint  of  the  purposes 
of  Providence  may  always  be  found  in  the  very  nature  of 
things — and  in  the  nature  of  people,  as  well.  There  was  no 
place  for  the  Mission  converts  in  the  regular  congregations 
which  were  to  be  found  in  that  district.  Though  the  doors 
might  swing  open  to  them  and  a  true  Christly  spirit  might 
welcome  them,  these  poorly  clad  and  ignorant  people  couldn't 
feel  at  home  among  strangers.  Then,  the  style  of  preaching, 
however  true  to  the  spirit  of  the  gospel,  was  away  out  of 
their  reach.  They  had  not  been  brought  up  in  the  church, 
had  not  been  born  in  any  regular  way,  but,  like  Topsy,  they 


96  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

had  just  "growed"  out  of  the  ground,  out  of  slime  pits.  And 
no  pastor  with  two  sermons  and  a  weekly  lecture  to  prepare 
for  a  critical,  fastidious  city  congregation,  could  possibly  give 
these  people  that  personal  oversight,  care,  sympathy  and 
help  which  were  so  much  needed  in  the  development  of  the 
religious  life  of  these  missioners  of  religion. 

They  knew  nothing  but  the  life  of  the  Mission.  They  had 
grown  up  in  poverty  and  ignorance  and  were  slowly  growing 
up  into  something  better.  But  where  they  had  received  their 
first  impulses  unto  a  better  life,  where  first  they  had  learned 
to  trust  in  Jesus  Christ  as  a  Savior,  that  place  was,  and  that 
place  alone,  could  ever  be,  to  them  a  "home."  And  so  the 
development  of 

AN  ORGANIZED  CHURCH 

out  of  the  unorganized  mass  of  humanity  forming  the  school, 
was  in  the  nature  of  a  divine  evolution.  No  one  knew  so  well 
as  Mr.  Moody  the  conditions  of  life  out  of  which  these  hun- 
dreds of  converts  had  come  into  the  knowledge  and  love  of 
God.  None  knew  so  well  their  spiritual  needs,  and  upon  the 
heart  of  no  one  else  did  such  a  burden  of  responsibility  rest 
for  their  future  welfare.  Hence,  after  nnich  careful  consid- 
eration on  the  part  of  those  most  deeply  interested,  and  with 
prayer  for  divine  guidance,  the  conviction  gradually  grew 
clearer  that,  for  the  spiritual  growth  and  larger  life  of  these 
converts,  a  church  should  be  organized  within  the  mission 
itself.  Acting  on  this  conviction,  Mr.  Moody  invited  all  the 
city  ministers  of  his  acquaintance,  and  prominent  laymen 
with  whom  he  had  been  associated  in  Christian  work  in  city, 
camp  or  field,  to  meet  in  council  at  the  Illinois  Street  Chapel 
for  the  purpose  of  organizing  a  church.  There  was  a  large 
attendance,  and  most  of  the  evangelical  denominations  were 
represented,  and  after  prayer,  Mr.  Moody  arose  and  present- 
ed the  business  for  which  he  had  called  them  together.  He 
gave  a  rapid  sketch  of  the  rise  of  the  mission,  of  the  great 
success  which  had  attended  it  in  bringing  sinners  to  Christ. 


BUILDS  HIS  FIRST  CHURCH.  g; 

Then  he  stated  the  difficulties  in  the  way  of  persuading  these 
converts  to  unite  with  other  churches;  hence  the  necessity  of 
an  organization  of  these  believers  into  an  orderly  and  regular 
church,  in  which  the  ordinances  of  the  gospel  might  be  cele- 
brated, and  of  which  he  might  be  the  recognized  pastor,  that 
so  the  work  of  the  Lord  might  be  carried  on  with  increasing 
power.  As  he  proceeded  to  state  the  case  it  became  increas- 
ingly evident  that  many  of  the  common  forms  would  not  suit 
their  case  at  all.  It  would  be  amusing,  were  it  not  such  a 
serious  matter,  to  notice  how  quickly  the  brethren  began  to 
make  excuses.  His  near  neighbor  and  friend,  the  rector  of 
an  Episcopal  church  felt  obliged  to  withdraw  from  the  coun- 
cil, which  he  could  not  officially  recognize,  though  expressing 
his  great  pleasure  in  the  good  work  being  done. 

A  good  Baptist  brother  could  not  assist  in  the  work  of  the 
council  because  Mr.  Moody  had  not  gone  down  into  the  water 
nor  come  up  out  of  the  water,  but  was  satisfied  with  the  ordi- 
nance as  administered  by  Dr.  Kirk,  after  the  fashion  suggest- 
ed in  the  text,  *'I  will  sprinkle  clean  water  upon  you  and  ye 
shall  be  clean."  A  Presbyterian  divine  expressed  his  sympa- 
thy with  the  work,  but  was  sorry  that  he  could  only  assist  in 
the  organization  of  a  Presbyterian  church, 

A  Methodist  pastor,  a  fast  friend  and  fellow  worker,  was 
sorry  that  these  good  people  could  not  be  organized  into  a 
Methodist  church,  with  class  meetings,  love  feasts,  quarterly 
meetings  and  camp  meetings — all  of  which  seemed  so  well 
suited  to  their  spiritual  needs. 

But  Mr.  Moody  held  to  some  of  the  strong  points  of  Cal- 
vinism, nor  could  he  be  persuaded  to  join  Conference,  nor  did 
he  propose  an  itinerant  ministry  for  his  church,  though  he 
was  a  great  traveler  himself.  Only  the  Congregationalists 
were  left  and  on  their  simple  polity  the  believers  were  organ- 
ized into  the  "Illinois  Street  Church."  This  was  their  all- 
inclusive  idea  of  a  church,  that  they  were  a  company  of  saved 
sinners,  that  Mr,  Moody  was  their  pastor,  and  Jesus  Christ 
7 


g8  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

was  head  over  all.  The  candidates  were  then  examined,  the 
ordinance  of  baptism  administered  at  the  hands  of  the  minis- 
try present,  and  then  with  tears  and  songs  of  joy  they  cele- 
brated together  their  first  communion. 

This  church,  though  thus  organized,  has  never  been  reck- 
oned a  Congregational  Church.  Mr.  Moody  never  received 
any  other  ordination  than  that  of  providence  and  the  spirit 
of  God;  nor  has  his  name  ever  been  published  in  the  minutes 
of  that  or  any  other  religious  body.  After  the  great  fire  a 
new  and  very  commodious  church  was  built  on  another  street, 
hence  its  name,  "The  Chicago  Avenue  Church,"  though 
popularly  known  to  this  day  as  "Moody's  Church." 

It  may  be  a  matter  of  interest  to  our  readers  to  have  their 
"Articles  of  Faith"  reprinted,  as  a  statement  of  the 
things  most  commonly  believed,  and  that  only  in  the 
very  words  of  scripture,  furnishing  thus  a  basis  of  doc- 
trinal union  in  which  all  who  love  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  can 
entirely  agree,  though  they  may  never  agree  in  forms  of  wor- 
ship or  church  polity. 

ARTICLES  OF  FAITH. 

"i.  We  believe  in  the  only  true  God  (John  17:3),  the 
Father,  the  Son  and  the  Holy  Ghost  (Matt.  28:19),  who  cre- 
ated all  things  (Rev.  4:11)  and  upholds  all  things  by  the  word 
of  His  power  (Heb.  i  :3);  in  whom  we  Hve,  and  move  and  have 
our  being  (Acts  17:28).  A  God  of  truth,  and  without  iniquity, 
just  and  right  is  He  (Deut.  32:4)  and  He  shall  judge  the 
world  (Ps.  9:8). 

"2.  We  believe  all  scripture  is  given  by  inspiration  of  God, 
and  is  profitable  for  doctrine,  for  reproof,  for  correction,  for 
instruction  in  righteousness;  that  the  man  of  God  may  be 
perfect,  thoroughly  furnished  unto  all  good  works  (2  Tim.  3: 
16,  17). 

"3.  We  believe  that  by  one  man  sin  entered  into  the  world, 
and  death  by  sin,  and  so  death  passed  upon  all  men,  for  that 
all  have  sinned  (Rom.  5:12)  and  judgment  came  upon  all  men 


BUILDS  HIS  FIRST  CHURCH.  99 

to  condemnation  (Rom.  5:18).  For  the  wages  of  sin  is 
death,  but  the  gift  of  God  is  eternal  life,  through  Jesus  Christ 
our  Lord  (Rom.  6:23). 

"4.  We  believe  that  there  is  none  other  name  under  heaven 
given  among  men,  whereby  we  must  be  saved  (Acts  4:12);  for 
other  foundation  can  no  man  lay  than  that  is  laid  which  is 
Jesus  Christ  (I  Cor,  3:11).  We  also  beheve  that  Christ  died 
for  our  sins  according  to  the  scriptures,  and  that  He  was 
buried,  and  that  He  rose  again  the  third  day  according  to  the 
scriptures  (I  Cor.  15:3-4.)  and  sat  down  on  the  right  hand  of 
the  Majesty  on  high  (Heb.  1 13)  now  to  appear  in  the  presence 
of  God  for  us  (Heb.  9:24). 

"5.  We  believe  God  so  loved  the  world  that  He  gave  His 
only  begotten  Son,  that  whosoever  believeth  in  Him  should 
not  perish,  but  have  everlasting  life  (John  3:16);  and  he  that 
believeth  not  God  hath  made  Him  a  liar;  because  he  believeth 
not  the  record  that  God  gave  of  His  Son,  and  this  is  the 
record,  that  God  hath  given  to  us  eternal  life,  and  that  this 
life  is  in  His  Son.  He  that  hath  the  Son  hath  life,  and  he 
that  hath  not  the  Son  of  God  hath  not  hfe  (I  John  5:10-12). 

"6.  We  believe  that  Christ,  the  head  over  all  things  to  the 
church  (Eph.  1.22),  hath  comanded  us  to  baptize  in  the  name 
of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost  (Matt. 
28:19);  and  that  the  same  night  in  which  He  was  betrayed  He 
took  bread;  and  when  He  had  given  thanks  He  brake  it,  and 
said,  Take,  eat:  this  is  my  body,  which  is  broken  for  you;  this 
do  in  remembrance  of  Me.  After  the  same  manner  also  He 
took  the  cup  when  He  had  supped  saying.  This  cup  is  the 
New  Testament  in  my  blood.  This  do  ye  as  oft  as  ye  drink  it, 
in  remembrance  of  Me;  for  as  often  as  ye  eat  this  bread  and 
drink  this  cup,  ye  do  show  the  Lord's  death  till  He  come  (I 
Cor.   11:23-26). 

"In  accepting  and  subscribing  to  the  above  articles  of  faith, 
we  by  no  means  set  aside  or  undervalue  any  of  the  scriptures 
of  the  Old  and  New  Testament,  but  believe  all  to  be  equally 


100  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

God's  own  written  word,  given  to  us  through  the  inspiration 
t)f  the  Holy  Spirit;  but  the  knowledge  and  belief  of  the  truth, 
as  stated  in  our  articles  of  faith,  we  deem  necessary  to  salva- 
tion and  sound  doctrine,  and  thereby  requisite  for  Christian 
fellowship." 

To  this  church  and  its  great  school  Mr.  Moody  gave  the 
most  of  his  time  and  energy,  though  calls  for  his  services  to 
attend  revivals  and  conventions  were  becoming  very  frequent 
and  urgent.  The  interest  and  attendance  increased  rapidly 
in  the  new  church.  The  secret  of  Mr.  Moody's  success  was 
largely  in  his 

WONDERFUL  POWERS  OF  LEADERSHIP. 

All  the  members  had  something  definite  to  do.  It  is  said  that 
the  bell  in  the  first  church  building  rang  out  every  night  in 
the  year  for  some  kind  of  a  religious  service.  There  were 
meetings  of  all  sorts  and  for  everybody:  for  mothers,  and 
men,  and  strangers,  and  boys,  and  girls;  Bible  meetings; 
gospel  meetings,  and  on  Sunday  the  services  were  in  an  al- 
most continuous  series  from  early  till  late,  and  Mr.  Moody 
tried  to  look  in  on  all  of  them. 

He  believed  every  Christian  had  a  work  to  do  and  he  was 
trying  to  help  people  find  out  what  they  could  do. 

Mr.  Moody  once  speaking  on  this  subject,  said:  "God  has  a 
niche  for  every  one  of  His  children.  Happy  the  man  or 
woman  who  has  found  his  or  her  place.  A  great  many  men 
want  to  do  big  things.  That  is  the  mistake  I  made  when  I 
started  out.  I  wanted  to  preach  to  intelligent  people,  but  I 
found  the  people  didn't  like  to  hear  me.  So  I  began  with 
the  children.  They  liked  to  hear  me,  and  I  got  along  very 
well.  I  grew  right  up  along  with  them.  But  it  was  years 
before  I  could  talk  profitably  to  grown  people.  I  talked  to 
the  children  and  it  was  a  grand  school.  It  was  the  prepara- 
tion I  needed.     That  was  my  theological  seminary." 

At  "Northfield  he  was  once  asked  how  to  start 


BUILDS  HIS  FIRST  CHURCH.  loi 

A  COTTAGE  PRAYER  MEETING. 
"The  way  we  used  to  do  in  Chicago,"  he  said,  "was  this: 
We  would  go  around  from  house  to  house  till  we  found  a 
woman  who  was  willing  to  have  a  meeting  in  her  house — it 
might  be  an  unconverted  woman.  It  takes  a  good  deal  of 
moral  courage  for  any  woman  to  have  a  meeting  in  her  house, 
where  all  the  people  in  the  street  know  her,  but  if  you  get  her 
consent,  ask  the  neighbors  to  come  in — a  great  many  people 
who  won't  go  to  a  church  will  go  to  a  cottage  prayer  meet- 
ing. Some  of  the  best  hours  I  have  spent  in  my  life  were  in 
the  cottage  meetings.  If  I  have  had  any  success,  that  is 
where  I  learned  to  preach.  Get  twenty  or  thirty  mothers 
together  with  their  children.  Read  a  portion  of  scripture. 
Get  the  children  to  sing;  it  will  always  interest  a  mother  to 
hear  her  child  sing,  even  if  it  doesn't  sing  as  well  as  Mr.  San- 
key.  Talk  comforting  words  to  the  mothers.  I  tell  you 
what:  I'd  rather  a  thousand  times  talk  to  these  mothers  than 
to  Gospel  hardened  sinners.  When  a  young  mother  is  just 
beginning  to  feel  her  responsibility,  it  isn't  very  difficult  to 
reach  her  heart." 

AS  A  PASTOR 

Mr.  Moody  knew  all  his  people  and  all  his  people  felt  acquaint- 
ed with  him.  Everybody  in  the  district  knew  the  number  of 
his  little  modest  frame  cottage.  Like  Job  he  could  say,  "The 
blessing  of  him  that  was  ready  to  perish  came  upon  me;  and 
I  caused  the  widow's  heart  to  sing  for  joy." 

Mr.  Hitchcock,  a  superintendent  in  his  Sabbath  school,  has 
given  an  account  of  two  hundred  calls  which  Mr.  Moody  made 
one  New  Year's  Day.  A  carefully  prepared  list  of  resi- 
dences had  been  made,  many  of  the  families  living  in  garrets 
or  in  upper  stories  in  tenement  houses: 

"At  an  early  hour  the  omnibus  which  was  to  take  him  and 
several  gentlemen  on  their  rounds  was  at  the  door.  On 
reaching  a  family  belonging  to  his  congregation,  he  would 
leap  out  of  the  'bus,  spring  up  the  stairways,  rush  into  the 


102  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

room,  and  pay  his  respects  as  follows:  'You  know  me;  I  am 
Moody.  This  is  Deacon  DeGolyer,  this  is  Deacon  Thane, 
this  is  Brother  Hitchcock.  Are  you  all  well?  Do  you  all 
come  to  church  and  Sunday  school?  Have  you  all  the  coal 
you  need  for  the  winter?  Let  us  pray.'  And  Mr.  Moody 
would  offer  ten  or  twenty  words  of  tender,  earnest  supplica- 
tion that  God  would  bless  the  man,  his  wife,  and  each  one  of 
the  children.  Then,  springing  to  his  feet,  he  would  dash  on 
his  hat,  dart  through  the  doorway,  and  down  the  stairs,  throw- 
ing a  hearty  'good-bye'  behind  him,  leap  into  the  'bus  and  off 
to  the  next  place  on  the  list;  the  entire  exercise  occupying 
about  a  minute  and  a  half." 

We  are  not  surprised  that  long  before  the  day  was  done 
the  horses  gave  out,  as  Mr.  Moody  insisted  on  their  going  on 
a  run — and  then  they  proceeded  on  foot.  One  after  another 
his  companions  gave  out  and  returned  to  his  house  as  best 
they  could,  while  the  tireless  pastor  finished  this  long  list  of 
calls  alone,  and  then  returned  home  in  the  highest  spirits, 
and  with  no  sense  of  fatigue,  to  laugh  at  his  exhausted  com- 
panions for  deserting  him. 

Mr.  Moody  always  liked  to  have  scripture  mottoes  decorat- 
ing the  walls  of  the  church  and  the  Sunday  school  rooms.  The 
story  is  a  familiar  one  that  the  gas  burners  above  the  pulpit 
were  arranged  to  spell  out  in  great  letters  of  light,  the  pre- 
cious words, 

"GOD  IS  LOVE." 

"One  Sunday  night  in  winter  a  poor,  shivering  fellow  was 
passing  the  place,  and  seeing  the  vestibule  door  open,  went 
in  to  shelter  himself  from  the  cold.  The  inner  door  was  ajar, 
and  being  curious  to  see  for  once  the  inside  of  a  place  of  wor- 
ship, he  looked  cautiously  in.  The  strange  light  above  the 
pulpit  caught  his  eye  and  fastened  his  attention,  and  the  holy 
words  burned  themselves  into  his  heart.  He  entered  the 
meeting,  gave  himself  to  Christ,  was  soon  happily  converted, 
and  became  a  useful  member  of  Mr.  Moodv's  church." 


BUILDS  HIS  FIRST  CHURCH.  103 

We  can  easily  understand  how  Mr.  Moody's  relations  to 
his  church  were  of  the  closest  and  most  tender  character. 
Most  of  the  members  of  it  had  been  won  to  Christ  by  his  own 
ministry.  Many  of  them  had  been  verily  plucked  as  brands 
from  the  burning,  had  been  drawn  up  from  many  a  pit  of  sin. 
Many  had  been  rescued  from  utmost  poverty  and  degrada- 
tion. How  could  they  love  him  enough?  Is  it  any  wonder 
that  for  his  sake  they  would  toil,  and  even  suffer  if  need  be 
for  him  who  had  brought  them  out  of  darkness  into  the  light 
and  liberty,  and  joy  and  fellowship  of  the  children  of  God? 
How  willingly,  under  his  inspiriting  admonitions  did  they 
themselves  strive  also  to  become  soul  winners! 

Thus  the  church  was  brought  up  to  a  high  degree  of  prac- 
tical efficiency.  Many  of  those  wild  lads  were  growing  up  to 
be  useful  men,  well  trained  in  the  Bible  and  helpful  in  carry- 
ing on  various  kinds  of  religious  services.  Among  the  dea- 
cons and  leading  members  were  quite  a  number  of  very  accep- 
table preachers,  who,  during  his  absences  from  home,  were 
quite  well  able  to  conduct  the  regular  services.  But  for  a 
long  time  he  made  it  a  point  to  get  back  for  his  own  work  on 
the  Sabbath. 

In  an  address  delivered  at  Northfield  on  "Enduement  for 
Service"  there  is  a  reference  to  this  period  of  his  ministry: 

"It  is  important  to  know  whether  the  work  we  are  doing 
is  the  work  God  would  have  us  do.  I  remember  that  at  one 
time  when  Dr.  Kirk  came  to  Chicago,  his  old  power  came 
back  upon  him,  and  he  just  shook  that  city  as  I  had  never 
seen  it  shaken.  I  suppose  if  he  had  stayed,  there  would  have 
been  thousands  and  thousands  converted.  The  mayor  of 
the  city  and  the  leacfing  men  all  came  to  hear  him,  and  they 
said,  'if  we  could  have  that  kind  of  preaching  we  would  be 
glad  to  hear  it.'  But  he  went  back  to  his  pastoral  work.  I 
believe  that  man  was  meant  for  an  evangelist;  yet  he  went 
back  to  visit  the  widow  and  the  fatherless.  That  was  an 
important  work,  but  others  could  have  done  it.     Some  men 


104  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

are  gifted  one  way  and  some  another.  One  man  has  got 
gifts  as  a  pastor,  and  another  has  got  gifts  as  an  evangelist, 
while  another  is  specially  qualified  to  stir  up  Christians.  Let 
every  one  ask 

AM  I  IN  THE  RIGHT  PLACE? 

Am  I  where  God  wants  me  to  be?  If  we  would  do  that,  it 
might  break  up  a  good  many  pastorates.  Are  you  ready — 
ready  to  cut  the  ties? 

"When  I  was  in  Chicago  I  used  to  take  a  circuit  out  in  the 
country  and  preach  during  the  week-evenings;  but  I  think  I 
made  a  great  mistake  in  binding  myself  too  closely  to  my 
regular  work.  There  was  time  after  time  when  there  would 
be  a  hundred  inquirers  in  the  country  and  yet  I  would  hurry 
away  so  as  to  preach  in  my  own  place  in  the  city  on  Sunday 
night,  and  then  perhaps  only  find  myself  beating  against  the 
air.  Let  us  be  ready  to  go  anywhere — to  go  everywhere  the 
Master  calls.  If  you  want  this  power  for  service,  God  will 
give  it  to  you.  Just  say:  'Here  I  am,  Lord;  send  me  where 
you  please,  only  give  me  souls.  Give  me  power  to  win  souls 
for  Jesus  Christ.'  When  that  is  the  uppermost  thought  in  our 
hearts  He  won't  disappoint  us." 


Farwell  Hall. 

^f^^  S  WE  study  the  various  sketches  of  the  life  and  la- 
^^^^k  bors  of  Mr.  Moody,  or  recall  the  last  twenty-five 
v(0)W  years  of  most  marvelous  success  in  everything 
^  ■  he  has  undertaken  in  the  ministry  of  the  gospel, 
in  the  service  of  humanity,  we  are  astonished  be- 
yond measure.  But  when  we  consider  that  this  man  made 
it  his  entire  business  to  serve  the  Lord,  why  should  we  be 
astonished?  At  the  very  beginning  of  his  wider  ministry  he 
has  revealed  to  us  one  factor  in  his  great  success:  "The  men 
who  have  been  successful  are  not  those  who  work  by  fits  and 
starts,  but  three  hundred  and  sixty-five  days  in  the  year.  By 
the  grace  of  God,  these  eighteen  years  I  have  been  kept  work- 
ing for  God.  People  complain  of  how  cold  other  people  are; 
that  is  a  sign  that  they  are  cold  themselves.  Keep  your  own 
heart  warm,  as  if  there  were  no  other  but  you  in  the  world. 
Keep  working  all  the  time,  at  steady,  constant  work.  For  the 
last  eleven  years  I  have  not  let'  a  day  pass  without  saying 
something  to  somebody  of  Christ.  Make  it  a  rule  that  never 
a  day  pass  without  speaking  for  Christ.  People  won't  like 
it.  If  you  are  a  living  witness  for  Christ  it  makes  people  mad 
against  you.  The  man  that  is  popular  with  the  world  is  not 
a  friend  to  Jesus  Christ.  You  can  not  serve  two  masters. 
The  world  hates  Christ,  and  if  you  are  a  friend  of  the  world, 
you  can  not  be  a  friend  of  His.  You  may  be  sure  that  some- 
thing is  wrong  with  you  when  everybody  is  your  friend. 
Every  man  here  can  win  souls  for  Christ." 

The  five  years  from  1866  to  1871  were  years  of  tremen- 
dous energy  and  enterprise.  The  greater  blessings  attend- 
ing the  building  of  the  Illinois  Street  Church,  with  its  vastly 
increased  facilities  for  Christian  work,  made  Mr.  Moody  very 
eager. to  have  a  new  building  erected  for  the  Christian  Asso- 
ciation work.  The  rooms  they  were  then  occupying  were 
greatly  overcrowded  and  entirely  inadequate  for  the  new 


io6  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

work  that  he  was  inaugurating.  We  have  heard  of  a  certain 
dark  closet  under  a  stairway  used  generally  for  the  storage 
of  wood  and  coal  that  was  the  only  place  he  could  find  for  pri- 
vate prayer  in  the  Methodist  Church  block.  Their  noon- 
day meetings  were  thronged.  A  great  work  of  salvation 
was  being  carried  on,  and  many  were  being  turned  away, 
when  Mr.  Moody  and  two  other  young  friends  entered  into  a 
written  covenant  to  pray  unceasingly  for  a  new  building. 

Some  said:  "The  only  way  for  us  to  obtain  a  new  building 
is  to  elect  Mr.  Moody 

PRESIDENT  OF  THE  ASSOCIATION." 

It  went  very  much  against  the  grain  with  many  of  the  more 
wealthy,  cultured  and  conservative  members  among  both  the 
clergy  and  the  laity  to  think  of  having  such  a  blunt,  unlearned 
man  as  Moody  elected  as  head  of  the  most  prominent  Asso- 
ciation in  all  the  country.  The  electioneering  was  very  ex- 
citing, but  the  friends  of  Mr.  Moody  won  out  by  a  few  votes 
and  he  was  elected  president.  At  once  a  building  committee 
was  appointed,  of  which  Mr.  John  V.  Farwell  was  chairman. 
A  stock  company  was  formed  to  hold  the  building  in  trust. 
Certificates  were  issued  to  bear  six  per  cent,  interest  from 
date  of  the  completion  of  the  edifice.  The  rentals  of  stores 
and  ofifices  were  expected  to  pay  interest  and  expenses  and 
afiford  a  surplus  of  $10,000  or  $15,000,  annually,  with  which 
to  buy  in  the  stock.  "But  so  large  a  portion  of  the  building 
was  to  be  devoted  to  religious  uses  that  subscription  to  its 
stock  had  a  sweet  savor  of  Christian  liberality.  It  might 
possibly  pay  for  itself.  But  probably  the  investment  would 
bring  larger  returns  in  heaven  than  on  earth."  The  placing 
of  over  $100,000  of  this  stock  was  the  great  financial  success 
of  Mr.  Moody's  life.  The  name  and  fame  of  his  splendid  edi- 
fice, with  a  hall  large  enough  to  seat  three  thousand  people, 
were  widely  known  throughout  the  Christian  public  of  the 
English  speaking  world. 

On  Sunday  evening,  September  29th,  1867,  this  spacious 


FARWELL  HALL.  107 

hall  crowded  with  a  vast  assembly,  was  opened  and  dedicated 
to  the  worship  and  service  of  Almighty  God.  From  the 
address  delivered  by  President  Moody — the  only  title,  I  be- 
lieve that  he  ever  honored  by  wearing — we  cull  but  a  brief 
extract  or  two: 

"If  there  is  one  thing  more  than  another  for  which  Chicago 
is  distinguished,  it  is  the  rapidity  of  its  growth  in  size,  wealth 
and  in  the  extent  of  its  trade.  But  of  the  great  and  swift  suc- 
cesses which  have  come  to  us,  none  is  more  striking  than 
that  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Asosciation. 

"During  the  last  month,  while  we  have  been  getting  in 
sight  of  the  end,  many  a  man  has  said  to  me,  'Don't  get 
proud.'  That  is  good  advice.  I  feel,  more  than  anything 
else,  and  more  than  ever  before,  that  Jesus  has  accomplished 
this  great  result  for  us.  And  for  this  wonderful  blessing  I 
want  you  all  to  praise  Him. 

"A  few  years  ago  this  Association  was  growing  weaker 
and  weaker,  and  at  one  time  it  came  very  near  dying.  Those 
wHo  organized  it  made  the  mistake  of  supposing  that  if  they 
opened  some  rooms,  and  gave  notice  of  meetings  to  be  held 
in  them,  sinners  would  come  there  of  their  own  accord  to 
be  saved.  But  they  were  not  long  in  finding  out  that  if  they 
would  save  the  lost  they  must  search  for  them  in  the  by-ways 
and  dark  places,  where  they  are  hidden  away  from  the  light 
of  Christ  and  His  gospel. 

"Then  we  began  to  go  out  and  bring  them  in.  That  was  just 
what  Christ  told  us  to  do.  And  now,  because  we  have  obeyed 
Him  and  gone  to  work  in  His  way,  Christ  has  helped  us  to 
build  this  hall. 

"But  it  seems  to  me  the  Association  has  just  commenced 
its  work.  There  are  those  indeed,  who  say  we  have  reached 
the  limit  of  our  power.  But  we  must  rally  round  the  cross; 
we  must  attack  and  capture  the  whole  city  for  Christ. 

"When  I  see  young  men,  by  thousands,  going  in  the  way  to 
death,  I  feel  like  falHng  at  the  feet  of  Jesus,  and  crying  out  to 


io8  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

Him  with  prayers  and  tears  to  come  and  save  them,  and  to 
help  us  to  bring  them  to  Him. 

"His  answer  to  our  prayers  and  His  blessing  on  our  work, 
give  me  faith  to  believe  that  a  mighty  influence  is  yet  to  go 
out  from  us,  that  shall  extend  through  this  country,  and 
every  country  in  the  state,  through  every  state  in  the  Union, 
and  finally,  crossing  the  waters,  shall  help  to  bring  the  whole 
world  to  God. 

"We  must  ask  for  money,  money,  more  money  at  every 
meeting;  not  for  the  support  of  the  Association  as  it  now  is, 
but  to  enlarge  its  operations.  We  want  to  build  homes  for 
young  men  and  for  young  women,  mission  schools,  Magdalen 
asylums,  as  well  as  places  of  resort  for  innocent  amusement 
and  mental  and  social  culture;  so  that  there  may  be  no  excuse 
for  our  young  people  being  caught  in  the  traps  which  Satan 
sets  for  them  all  over  the  city." 

Standing  on  that  platform  and  gazing  upon  the  sea  of  glad 
and  shining  faces,  rejoicing  together  in  what  God  had  wrought 
through  them,  it  is  httle  wonder  that  he  looked  out  on  the  fu- 
ture and  longed  to  see  the  greater  glory  of  God.  Grander  than 
that  vision  splendid  that  rose  before  his  ardent  imagination 
have  been  the  magnificent  results  of  a  thirty  years'  service 
since  that  blessed  hour.  He  was  permitted  with  his  friend  and 
co-laborer,  Mr.  Sankey,  and  other  helpers,  to  carry  on  the 
most  extensive  evangelistic  labors  that  ever  mortal  man  has 
accomplished.  He  was  permitted  to  girdle  the  globe  with 
his  enthusiastic  and  successful  ministries.  He  rejoiced  to  see 
rising  on  the  hills  of  Northfield  and  Mount  Hermon  schools 
for  the  Christian  training  of  thousands  of  earnest-hearted 
young  men  and  women,  and  in  the  heart  of  Chicago  a  splen- 
did church  and  Bible  institute  for  the  salvation  and  education 
of  thousands  more.  The  Lord  poured  into  his  hands  gold  by 
the  hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars  that  these  early  visions 
and  desires  of  his  soul  might  come  to  glorious  fruition.  It 
was  as  if  the  Master  had  said:  "The  world  shall  have  one  ex- 


FARWELL  HALL.  109 

ample  given  to  it  of  what  one  talent  may  amount  to  during  a 
single  man's  life  time  when  put  out  to  usury." 

After  a  most  eloquent  address,  Mr.  Farwell  presented  his 
report  as  treasurer,  from  which  it  appears  that  the  cost  of  the 
entire  plant  and  equipment  was  only  one  thousand  dollars 
short  of  an  even  $200,000;  and  a  little  later  Mr.  George  H. 
Stuart,  of  Philadelphia,  was  introduced  to  that  most  enthusi- 
astic audience.  As  president  of  the  United  States  Christian 
Commission  no  man  living  could  have  been  more  welcome,  as 
certainly  none  was  more  loved  and  honored,  for  his  magni- 
ficent management  and  consummate  leadership  of  that  Com- 
mission during  the  war.  It  was  while  engaged  in  that  work 
that  he  had  first  met  Mr.  Moody,  and  had  come  to  value  his 
sterling  worth  and  enthusiastic  devotion  as  a  Christian  work- 
er. Mr.  Stuart  began  his  speech  by  saying  that  he  had  trav- 
eled over  eight  hundred  miles  expressly  to  be  present  at  the 
dedication  of  the  first  hall  ever  erected  for  Christian  young 
men.  He  described  the  origin  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian 
Association  in  1844  in  London  in  meetings  for  prayer  held  in 
the  private  room  of  Mr.  George  Williams,  a  clerk  in  a  mercan- 
tile house,  situated  in  St.  Paul's  churchyard. 

"The  Chicago  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  was  re- 
vival born.  It  was  among  the  first  in  existence.  It  was  also 
among  the  earliest  and  most  successful  missionary  organiza- 
tions brought  into  use  in  connection  with  the  war.  God  has 
'been  with  you.  You  have  had  the  'God  bless  you'  of  thous- 
ands of  soldiers,  and  now  that  the  war  is  over,  untold  thous- 
ands of  sinners  out  of  Christ  wait  for  your  peaceful  ministry 
in  his  name.     *     *     * 

"And  now  with  the  hope  of  youth  and  the  vigor  of  manhood 
your  Association  commences  a  new  and  splendid  career, 
blessed  with  the  confidence  of  all  branches  of  the  Christian 
church.  Therefore,  inscribe  upon  your  banners  the  words  of 
the  heroic  missionary,  Carey:  'Attempt  great  things  for  God 
and  expect  great  things  from  God.'  " 


no  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

Near  the  close  of  the  service,  Mr.  Moody  rose  and  said: 
"It  was  the  generous  subscription  of  thirty  thousand  dol- 
lars by  the  chairman  of  our  building  committee,  which  pur- 
chased this  land  and  gave  us  at  the  outset  a  good  hope  of  all 
we  see  to-night.  Now,  by  way  of  giving  honor  to  whom  hon- 
or is  due,  I  propose  that  we  name  this  building 
FARWELL  HALL. 

All  in  favor  say  'Aye.'  "  With  a  glad,  tumultuous  shout,  the 
hall  was  christened.  We  may  imagine  but  not  describe  the 
enthusiasm  that  marked  the  services  of  that  memorable  eve- 
ning. What  volumes  of  praise,  what  solemn  words  of  thanks- 
giving and  of  supplication!  What  tears  of  gladness,  with  re- 
newal of  vows !  What  an  overshadowing  of  the  divine  pres- 
ence rewarding  and  encouraging  their  faith! 

As  we  strive  to  realize  something  of  what  all  that  meant  for 
the  spiritual  and  material  welfare  of  the  multitudes  in  that 
great,  bustling,  driving  city  of  Chicago,  let  us  not  forget  to 
thank  God  for  the  energy,  courage,  devotion  and  zeal  of  that 
young  man,  just  passing  thirty  years  of  age,  who  was  the  vital- 
izing force  and  unifying  power  that  made  Farwell  Hall  a  pos- 
sibility— Dwight  L.  Moody. 

That  we  are  not  saying  too  much  is  proved  by  a  most  re- 
markable testimonial  of  the  confidence  of  the  Christian  minis- 
ters and  the  members  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Associa- 
tion, when  they  voted  to  give  over  the  entire  direction  of  the 
meetings  in  Farwell  Hall  to  Mr.  Moody,  the  president  of  the 
Association.  Who  could  have  believed  it  possible  that  the 
humble  clerk  in  a  shoe  store,  who  but  twelve  short  years  be- 
fore was  gathering  ragged,  dirty  vagabonds  oflf  the  streets  into 
a  deserted  shanty  and  reading  to  them  stories  of  the  gospel 
by  the  light  of  a  few  tallow  candles,  should  now  have  placed  at 
his  free  disposal  one  of  the  finest  halls  in  America,  and  the 
most  completely  equipped  establishment  in  which  to  carry  on 
Christian  work  that  could  be  found  in  the  whole  world? 

Never  was  Christian  layman  so  honored  before — ^yet  it  did 


FARWELLHALL.  iil 

not  seem  to  kindle  any  spark  of  selfish  pride;  but  it  did  give 
his  ceaseless  ambition  wider  spheres  of  service. 

The  noon  prayer  meetings,  under  his  impetuous  leader- 
ship often  filled  the  smaller  hall  with  its  thousand  chairs,  and 
on  special  occasions  the  great  hall  was  used.  •  He  was  not 
above  doing  any  Christian  work  that  he  asked  anybody  else 
to  do.  To  the  man  who  began  seeking  lost  sinners  on  "The 
Sands"  there  was  nothing  beneath  him.  To  him  who  could 
go  among  the  saloons  and  from  the  street  corners  capture  a 
dozen  roughs  and  take  them  with  a  rush  into  his  evening  ser- 
vices in  the  "Chicago  Avenue  Church,"  it  was  an  easy  thing  to 
stand  on  the  sidewalk  and  invite  men  to  "go  right  up  to  the 
noon  prayer  meeting." 

STRANGERS'  MEETINGS  IN  FARWELL  HALL. 

He  organized  a  meeting  on  Monday  evenings  especially 
for  strangers,  of  which  he  gave  a  vivid  description  to  the 
young  men  of  Edinburgh,  in  telling  them  how  great  need 
there  is  of  sympathy  if  one  would  reach  the  hearts  of  men.  He 
said: 

"Some  men  have  courage,  perseverance  and  zeal,  but  their 
hearts  are  as  cold  as  an  icicle.  Christ  might  have  been  born 
in  a  palace  had  He  chosen,  but  poor  men  would  have  said  He 
had  not  come  for  them;  but  He  was  born  in  a  manger,  lower 
than  their  own  rank  in  life.  The  minister  who  speaks  to  peo- 
ple as  if  he  were  separate  from  them,  that  tells  them  what  they 
should  do,  this  and  that,  will  not  carry  them  with  him.  To 
speak  to  men  from  a  higher  platform  is  not  the  way  to  do  them 
good.  It  should  be  what  we  do — we  poor  sinners  and  you. 
The  milk  of  human  kindness  is  a  great  element  in  bringing 
souls  to  Christ. 

"We  have  in  Chicago  a  meeting  for  strangers;  and  it  is 
most  blessed.  Every  Monday  night,  seventy-five  to  a  hun- 
dred young  men  newly  arrived  in  the  city,  assemble  to  find 
friends.     A  young  man  coming  from  the  country  to  a  situation 


112  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

or  to  college  in  town,  feels  very  lonely.  He  walks  the  streets 
and  has  no  one  of  all  the  crowds  to  speak  to  him,  and  he  is 
miserable.  That  is  the  time  when  his  heart  is  softest;  then,  if 
any  one  speaks  to  him,  or  shows  him  acts  of  kindness,  he 
never  forgets  it. 

"The  devil  watches  for  friendless  youths  like  these;  and  the 
ensnaring  paths  of  vice  seem  refuges  from  loneliness.  Such 
a  young  man,  walking  along  the  street,  sees  a  big  brown  paper 
pasted  on  a  boarding,  or  at  a  railway  station,  or  somewhere 
else,  having  painted  on  it,  'Strangers'  meeting  to-night.  All 
strangers  invited  to  attend.'  So  he  goes,  and  meets  a  kind 
look  and  words  of  friendship,  and  it  is  better  to  him  than  any- 
thing in  the  world. 

"During  our  war  there  was  a  southern  man  who  came  over 
to  a  Wisconsin  regiment,  saying  he  could  not  fight  to  uphold 
slavery.  Sometime  after,  the  mail  from  the  north  came  in, 
and  all  the  men  got  letters  from  their  relations,  and  universal 
joy  prevailed.  This  southern  man  said  he  wished  he  were 
dead;  he  was  most  unhappy,  for  there  were  no  letters  for  him. 
His  mother  was  dead,  and  his  father  and  brothers  would  have 
shot  him  if  they  could,  for  going  against  them.  This  man's 
tent-mate  was  very  sorry  for  his  friend,  and  when  he  wrote  to 
his  mother  in  Wisconsin,  he  just  told  her  all  about  it. 

"His  mother  sat  down  and  wrote  to  her  son's  friend.  She 
called  him  her  son,  and  spoke  to  him  Hke  a  mother.  She  told 
him,  when  the  war  was  over,  that  he  must  come  to  her,  and 
that  her  home  would  be  his.  When  the  letter  reached  the  regi- 
ment, the  chaplain  took  it  down  to  where  this  man  was  stand- 
ing and  told  him  it  was  for  him ;  but  he  had  no  friends ;  it  must 
be  for  some  one  else.  He  was  persuaded  to  open  it,  and  when 
he  read  it  he  felt  such  joy  he  went  down  the  lines  saying 
T've  got  a  mother.'  When  afterwards  the  regiment  was  dis- 
banded, and  the  men  were  returning  to  their  homes,  there 
was  none  who  showed  so  much  anxiety  as  this  man  to  get  to 
his  mother  in  Wisconsin.    There  are  hundreds  of  young  men 


FARWELL  HALL.  113 

who  want  mothers,  and  any  kindness  done  to  them  will  not 
lose  its  reward," 

It  is  said  that  the  intensity  of  the  feeling  under  the  burning 
words  of  Mr.  Moody  was  such  that  at  the  close  there  was  a 
great  burst  of  applause  commencing,  which  Mr.  Moody 
checked  by  quietly  lifting  his  hand,  and  saying:  "We  don't 
want  applause;  and  mind,  it's  Sunday." 

We  have  already  quoted  the  sentence,  "If  you  are  a  living 
witness  for  Christ  it  makes  people  mad  against  you."  And 
perhaps  no  man  ever  made  more  people  mad  by  his  eager, 
blunt  manner  than  Mr.  Moody;  but  how  often  a  blessing  fol- 
lowed, as  the  following  incident  will  show: 

"You  must  stop  your  impertinence,"  said  one  of  his  friends 
to  him,  one  day.  "You  narrowly  escaped  a  beating  from  a 
man  whom  you  asked  in  the  street  whether  he  were  a  Christian 
or  no.  He  said  he  would  have  slapped  you  in  the  face  if  he 
had  not  remembered  you  were  a  non-combatant." 

"Do  you  remember  his  name?"  inquired  Mi;.  Moody.  It 
was  given  him.  "Have  you  seen  him  within  a  few  days?"  "No." 
"Well,"  said  Mr.  Moody,  triumphantly,  "that  man  has  come 
to  be  one  of  my  very  best  friends.  He  was  baptized  and  join- 
ed the  church  last  Sunday;  and  he  dates  his  first  serious  feel- 
ings from  that  impertinent  question  of  mine." 

In  these  direct  appeals  to  strangers  he  was  accustomed  to 
act  from  impulse  which  he  believed  was  given  him  by  the  Spirit 
of  the  Lord.  One  who  knew  him  most  intimately  said 
of  him: 

"He  seems  always  to  be  carried  along  on  a  sea  of  inspira- 
tion. He  passes  his  life  tossing  on  its  waves  where  he  is  as 
perfectly  at  home  as  the  stormy  petrel  on  the  ocean."  But 
"to  every  man  his  work,"  was  one  of  his  favorite  sayings. 

Mr.  Moody  was  an  incessant  student    of    the  Bible.     For 

years  he  rose  at  five  o'clock  that  he  might  have  a  few  hours  of 

prayerful  study  of  the  Word,  before  beginning  the  arduous 

labors  of  the  day,  while  before  the  noon-day  meetings  he 

8 


114  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

generally  spent  a    half-hour  in  prayer  before  going  down  to 
the  sidewalk  to  invite  men  to  come  in. 

It  is  narrated  of  him  that  one  day  a  merchant  from  a  dis- 
tant city  was  passing  along  a  street  in  Chicago  when  he  was 
suddenly  stopped  by  a  person  whom  he  had  never  seen  before, 
who,  placing  his  hand  upon  his  arm,  and  looking  him  full  in 
the  face,  startled  him  by  the  question,  "Do  you  belong  to 
Christ?"  For  a  moment  he  was  too  much  astonished  to  re- 
ply, but  at  length,  remembering  that  he  was  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Farwell  Hall,  a  smile  broke  over  his  face,  and  looking 
kindly  upon  his  questioner,  he  replied,  "You  must  be  Moody." 
And  so  it  was. 

In  at  least  this  one  thing  Mr.  Moody  obeyed  the  injunction 
of  the  great  apostle,  "Be  instant  in  season  and  out  of  season." 

I  have  no  doubt  Mr.  Moody  made  a  great  many  mistakes 
and  sometimes  he  stumbled;  but  it  always  seemed  as  if  he 
stumbled  towards  Christ.  Mr.  Reynolds,  a  lifelong  friend, 
narrated  the  following  incident  told  him  by  a  Christian  bro- 
ther: 

"I  shall  always  remember  Mr.  Moody,"  said  he,  "for  he  was 
the  means  of  bringing  me  to  Christ.  I  was  in  a  railway  train 
one  day,  when  a  stout,  cheery  looking  stranger  came  in  and 
sat  down  on  the  seat  beside  me.  We  were  passing  through  a 
beautiful  country,  to  which  he  called  my  attention,  saying, 

"  'Did  you  ever  think  what  a  good  heavenly  Father  we  have, 
to  give  us  such  a  pleasant  world  to  live  in?'  I  made  some  in- 
different answer,  upon  which  he  earnestly  inquired:  'Are  you  a 
Christian?'  I  answered  'No.'  'Then,'  said  he,  'you  ought 
to  be  at  once.  I  am  to  get  ofif  at  the  next  station,  but  if  you 
will  kneel  down  right  here,  I  will  pray  the  Lord  to  make  you 
a  Christian.' 

"Scarcely  knowing  what  I  did,  I  knelt  down  beside  him 
there,  in  the  car  filled  with  passengers,  and  he  prayed  for  me 
with  all  his  heart.  Just  then  the  train  drew  up  at  the  station 
and  he  had  only  time  to  get  off  before  it  started  again.     Sud- 


FARWELL  HALL.  iiS 

denly  coming  to  myself,  out  of  what  seemed  more  like  a  dream 
than  a  reality,  I  rushed  out  on  the  car  platform,  and  shouted 
after  him,  Tell  me  who  you  are!'  He  replied,  'My  name  is 
Moody.'  I  never  could  shake  off  the  conviction  which  took 
hold  of  me,  until  the  prayer  of  that  strange  man  was  answered 
and  I  had  become  a  Christian  man." 

With  the  same  impetuous  zeal  he  would  sometimes  walk  up 
and  down  the  aisles  in  Farwell  Hall  scanning  the  faces  of  the 
congregation  for  tokens  of  the  Spirit's  strivings;  and  when  he 
noticed  a  thoughtful  or  penitent  looking  person  he  would  go 
right  to  him  and  say,  "Are  you  a  Christian?"  If  the  answer 
was  at  all  doubtful  he  would  quickly  say,  "Do  you  want  to  be 
saved?  Do  you  want  to  be  saved  now?  Let  us  pray,"  and 
the  half-penitent  soul  and  Christians  about  would  fall  on  their 
knees  while  Mr.  Moody  prayed  for  him  and  the  man  would 
find  himself,  as  it  were,  pushed  head  foremost  into  the  king- 
dom of  heaven.  Mr  Moody  soon  came  into  great  prominence 
throughout  the  central  west  and  northwest  as  the  organizer 
of  Christian  Associations,  teaching  men  out  of  his  twelve  or 
fifteen  years'  experience  in  Chicago,  how  to  plunge  into  the 
rapids  of  sin  down  which  sinners  were  sweeping,  to  rescue 
them  from  destruction. 

He  insisted  that  they  must  go  out  and  seek  the  lost,  seek 
everywhere  in  the  courts  and  alleys,  in  highways  and  byways, 
in  saloons,  gambling  dens,  and  brothels,  if  by  any  means  they 
might  save  some. 

But  scarcely  were  all  the  agencies  centering  in  Farwell  Hall 
brought  into  highest  state  of  efficiency  before  by  fire  in  Jan- 
uary, 1868,  it  was  suddenly,  totally  destroyed.  The  financial 
loss  was  very  great,  as  it  was  but  partially  insured;  yet  almost 
before  the  ruins  were  cold,  new  plans  for  a  finer  hall  still  were 
well  under  way.  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Farwell  were  both 
pledged  to  this  great  enterprise. 

Many  of  the  old  stockholders  ralHed  nobly  to  their  help; 
new  ones  were  solicited,  and,  in  another  year,  a  second  Far- 


1X6  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

well  Hall,  grander  than  the  first,  arose  on  the  same  founda- 
tions. ^ 

One  of  the  special  means  of  reaching  and  retaining  the 
hearts  of  the  poor  was  through 

THE  RELIEF  DEPARTMENT 
of  the  Association  as  administered  by  Mr.  Moody.  It  was 
said  of  him  that  he  never  gave  away  a  pair  of  trousers,  or  pair 
of  shoes,  or  a  load  of  wood  or  pound  of  sugar  or  tea  without 
an  earnest  exhortation  or  prayer;  and  on  all  posssible  occa- 
sions the  recipients  were  urged  to  give  their  hearts  to  Christ, 
and  attend  the  prayer  meetings  in  Farwell  Hall.  The  poor  in 
all  parts  of  the  city,  as  well  as  in  the  district  about  his  church, 
came  to  know  Mr.  Moody,  and  would  run  after  him,  some- 
times to  ask  assistance,  very  often  to  express  their  gratitude 
and  love.  If  any  one  praised  his  charity  he  would  say,  "Don't 
praise  me,  but  if  you  love  me,  love  Christ  for  my  sake." 

While  tender  hearted  and  full  of  sympathy  with  those  in 
distress,  he  dispensed  relief  to  them  as  he  did  to  the  wounded 
soldiers  on  the  battlefields,  not  primarily  for  the  sake  of  com- 
forting their  bodies,  but  with  the  hope  of  saving  their  souls. 
This  was  the  consuming  passion  of  his  soul — recognized  and 
felt  and  acknowledged  to  be  such  by  Christian  friends  and 
men  of  the  world — without  cant  or  pride  or  self  righteousness, 
or  slightest  measure  of  self-seeking,  and  this  fact  gave  him 
access  to  the  hearts  and  pocket  books  of  rich  men,  whom  no 
other  man  could  reach. 

The  four  years  during  which  Mr.  Moody  was  president  of 
the  Association  were  years  of  great  spiritual  power.  His 
Sunday  services  were  most  remarkable.  Beginning  the  day 
with  a  Sabbath  morning  sermon  in  his  church,  he  devoted  the 
afternoon  almost  entirely  to  his  great  mission  school,  and  after 
meetings.  The  climax  came  in  the  evening  at  Farwell  Hall, 
where  he  generally  repeated  his  morning  sermon,  though  with 
endlessly  varied  applications  and  illustrations.  With  a  single 
exception  this  was  the  largest  Protestant  congregation  in 


FARWELL  HALL.  117 

Chicago,  and  was  always  followed  by  inquiry  meetings  in  the 
smaller  hall,  where  many  members  who  had  been  trained  in 
his  church  proved  most  efficient  helpers. 

Farwell  Hall,  with  the  finest  audience  room  in  the  city,  be- 
came the  great  religious  center  of  Chicago.  Great  religious 
campaigns  were  organized  in  it,  and  great  revivals  swept  out 
from  it.  During  all  those  years  the  leading,  organizing,  di- 
recting spirit,  the  man  whose  presence  was  felt  down  through 
the  minutest  details  of  all  its  multipUed  agencies  for  good,  was 
this  same  humble,  earnest,  devoted,  wonderful  worker  and 
growing  preacher — Dwight  L.  Moody. 


Finds  a  Larger  Sphere. 

FTER  twelve  years  of  such  diversified  and  indefa- 
tigable labors,  there  was  probably  no  man  then  liv 
ing  who  could  more  wisely  answer  the  question  of 
Christendom,  "How  shall  we  reach  the  masses?" 
And  especially  was  this  true  in  his  experience  in 
building  up  his  great  mission  school. 

Mr.  Moody,  feeling  his  lack  of  all  the  wisdom  of  the  schools, 
sought  his  instructions  directly  from  the  Lord.  "If  any  man 
lack  wisdom  let  him  ask  of  God*  *  *  *  and  it  shall  be  given 
him."  And  his  simple  faith  had  been  so  honored  that  in  spite 
of  his  headlong  and  impetuous  manner,  he  was  listened  to  with 
greatest  respect  and  had  gradually  come  to  be  a  master 
among  men.  His  work  had  been  so  greatly  blessed  that  his 
presence  was  eagerly  sought  by  the  Sunday  school  conven- 
tions of  the  various  counties  and  especially  at  the  great  state 
conventions.  Mr.  Moody,  Mr.  Jacobs,  and  ]\Iajor  Whittle, 
were  widely  known  as  the  Chicago  Trio,  and  were  the  closest 
companions  on  many  of  these  tours. 

Mr.  Moody  felt  it  to  be  his  special  mission  to  bring  the  con- 
vention itself  under  the  power  of  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ 
and  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  In  these  meetings  there 
were  the  beginnings  of  a  new  life  for  him — he  was  finding  out 
the  hiding  place  of  divine  power.  The  wonderful  results  were 
seen  in  the  great  meetings  held  at  Springfield  in  1865.  These 
brethren  laid  their  plans  carefully  and  prayerfully  for  making 
this  convention  one  of  great  spiritual  power.  They  went  down 
three  or  four  days  before  the  date  of  the  convention,  ar- 
riving on  a  Saturday.  The  churches  were  thrown  open  to 
them,  the  afternoon  service  resulting  in  the  awakening  of 
seventy  persons.  The  revival  meetings  continued  right  through 
the  week,  with  about  two  hundred  professed  conversions.  The 


FINDS  A  LARGER  SPHERE.  119 

sessions  of  the  convention  were  made  glorious  by  the  pres- 
ence of  the  Holy  Spirit.     All  hearts  were  thrilled  by  the 

POWER  FROM  ON  HIGH 
and  the  delegates  went  down  as  from  Pentecost  to  carry  the 
holy  lire  to  their  own  churches  and  schools.  Revivals  were 
kindled  everywhere  and  the  reports  brought  up  to  the  next 
convention  revealed  the  glorious  news  that  about  ten  thous- 
and conversions  were  directly  traceable  to  the  Pentecostal 
baptism  of  the  previous  year..  These  reports  kindled  such 
enthusiasm  that  the  convention  arranged  through  county 
committees  for  the  visitation  of  every  district  in  the  state  in 
the  interest  of  Sunday  schools.  These  visitations  were  followed 
by  county  conventions  throughout  all  the  southern  part  of  the 
state,  conducted  by  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Reynolds  of  Peoria. 

The  progress  of  these  brethren  was  one  long  series  of  re- 
vivals. The  interest  increased  continually  as  the  news  swept 
over  the  towns  like  a  prairie  fire.  There  were  camp  meetings, 
field  preaching,  street  preaching,  preaching  in  churches,  court 
houses,  in  public  squares — preaching  everywhere.  Gallatin 
county  reported  that  the  number  of  conversions  reached  up- 
wards of  six  hundred. 

Hearing  reports  of  the  great  blessings  following  these  con- 
ventions and  means  of  grace,  the  Young  Men's  Christiaif 
Association,  of  Boston,  invited  Mr.  Moody  to  attend 

A  GREAT  SUNDAY  SCHOOL  MEETING 
at  Tremont  Temple,  and  explain  the  Illinois  method.  He  ex- 
plained the  character  of  their  work  and  roused  a  good  degree 
of  enthusiasm,  but  the  conservative  brethren  got  the  floor  and 
raised  so  many  objections  and  found  so  many  lions  in  the  way 
that  they  actually  voted  to  postpone  the  whole  matter  for  a 
year.  But  Mr.  Moody  was  not  to  be  easily  defeated.  The 
convention  was  about  to  adjourn — a  complete  failure — when 
he  whispered  to  the  chairman,  "Call  another  meeting  this 
evening;  tell  the  people  I  will  speak." 

The  temple  was  filled  to  hear  the  man  who  had  been  so  com- 


120  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

pletely  turned  down  in  the  afternoon.  Mr.  Moody  had  already 
proved  himself  a  masterful  man,  full  of  resources  and  of  pro- 
foundest  convictions  and  with  great  power  over  popular  audi- 
ences. He  began  cautiously  with  a  thrilling  description  of  his 
work  at  the  North  Market  Mission;  gave  them  incidents  of  the 
rescue  of  wharf-rats  and  gutter-snipes,  discouraged  men  and 
fallen  women  redeemed,  restored  and  becoming  cultivated 
and  honorable  men  and  women,  and  when  his  audience  had 
reached  the  point  of  intensest  interest  he  turned  the  tide  very 
skillfully,  as  follows: 

"Brethren  and  friends,  I  am  not  very  much  used  to  putting 
motions  and  bringing  them  back  again  after  they  have  been 
voted  down;  but  we  must  do  something  to  correct  that  wrong 
vote  this  morning.  Now,  everybody  in  the  house  who  is  not 
satisfied  with  that  vote,  and  wants  to  go  to  work  at  once  and 
organize  this  state  after  the  Illinois  plan,  let  him  stand  on  his 
^eet,  hold  up  his  right  hand  and  say  'Aye.'  " 

As  by  a  common  impulse,  the  entire  congregation  rose  to 
their  feet  and  answered  "Aye"  in  a  shout  so  loud  that  before 
the  close  of  the  year  its  echoes  were  heard  all  over  the  old 
Bay  state. 

Thus  Mr.  Moody  went  from  Maine  to  California,  from  Chi- 
cago to  Texas,  St.  Paul  to  New  Orleans,  year  after  year,  or- 
ganizing and  rousing  up  Young  Men's  Christian  Associations, 
laboring  in  revivals,  gaining  wider  experience  and  deeper 
training  for  the  marvelous  work  across  the  sea,  which  the 
Lord  held  in  store  for  him. 

The  year  1871,  however,  was  to  prove  in  its  far-reaching 
consequences  one  of  the  most  eventful  in  all  his  life — 

AN  EPOCH  MAKING  YEAR. 
In  it  he  was  to  learn  how  to  preach  as  he  had  never  preached 
before,  he  was  to  find  his  Jonathan,  to  whom  he  would  cleave 
during  life,  and  he  was  to  be  swept  by  the  great  fire  out  on  his 
world-wide  mission.  Heretofore  his  sermons  had  been  chiefly 
made  up  out  of  his  personal  experience,  of  remarkable  conver- 


FINDS  A  LARGER  SPHERE.  121 

sions,  of  rousing  appeals  to  Christians  and  fervent  calls  to 
sinners  to  repent  and  believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and 
great  power  had  accompanied  the  word.  He  was  studying  the 
Bible  with  utmost  eagerness  and  feeding  his  soul  on  the  rich 
and  precious  promises,  but  he  was  now  to  learn  how  to  preach 
it,  and  he  was  himself  to  become  one  of  the  most  successful 
Bible  teachers  of  his  age. 

It  happened  on  this  wise.  Mr.  Moody  was  about  to  leave 
on  Saturday  for  some  convention  and  in  arranging  for  the 
Sabbath  he  said  to  his  wife,  "I  have  received  a  letter  from 
Harry  Moorhouse  who  calls  himself 

THE  BOY  PREACHER' 

and  he  says  he  will  preach  for  me  if  I  wash  it.  It  is  too  late 
to  get  any  one  else;  and  I  suppose  we  must  let  him  try  it  in 
the  morning;  but  if  he  makes  a  failure  you  must  tell  the  dea- 
cons to  find  some  one  else  for  evening." 

On  his  return  he  anxiously  asked  what  sort  of  a  preacher 
Harry  Moorhouse  had  proved  to  be. 

"He  is  a  wonderful  preacher,"  was  the  reply.  "On  Sunday 
morning  he  preached  from  the  text,  'God  so  loved  the  world 
that  He  gave  His  only  begotten  Son  that  whosoever  believeth 
in  Him  should  not  perish,  but  have  everlasting  life.'  A  crowd 
filled  the  church  at  night,  when  he  took  the  same  text  again, 
and  so  wonderfully  did  he  explain  it  that  the  deacons  have 
asked  him  to  preach  every  night  this  week." 

It  was  a  week  long  to  be  remembered.  Night  after  night 
he  preached  from  the  same  text  to  immense  congregations, 
until  he  made  the  love  of  God  appear  the  central  truth  of  the 
Bible.  At  the  close  of  the  last  service  he  said:  "If  I  were  to 
die  to-night  and  go  up  to  heaven,  and  there  meet  Gabriel,  who 
stands  in  the  presence  of  God;  and  if  I  were  to  ask  him  how 
much  God  loves  sinners,  I  think  he  would  say:  'God  so  loved 
the  world  that  He  gave  His  only  begotten  Son  that  whosoever 
beheveth  in  Him  should  not  perish  but  have  everlasting  life.'  " 

When  the  meetings  were  over,  Mr.  Moorhouse  said  to 


122  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

Mr.  Moody:  "You  arc  sailing  on  the  wrong  tack;  if  you  will 
change  your  course  and  learn  to  preach  God's  words  instead 
of  your  own,  He  will  make  you  a  great  power  for  good." 

To  Mr.  Moody  these  words  were  as  a  revelation  from 
heaven.  He  began  to  see  that  the  word  of  the  Lord  giveth 
light.  From  this  time  on  the  exhortation  of  Paul  to  Timothy 
came  home  to  him  with  tremendous  force: 

"I  charge  thee,  therefore,  before  God,  and  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  who  shall  judge  the  quick  and  the  dead  at  His  appear- 
ing and  His  kingdom:  Preach  the  word." 

But  how  could  he  acquire  such  knowledge  of  the  word?  He 
had  no  time  to  study  books ;  besides,  he  had  no  books  to  study. 

Mr.  Moorhouse  said,  ^'You  only  need  one  book  for  the  study 
of  the  Bible." 

Mr.  Moody  responded,  "You  must  have  studied  a  great 
many  books  to  come  by  your  knowledge  of  it." 

But  the  answer  was,  "No!  Since  I  began  to  be  an  evangel- 
ist I  have  been  a  man  of  one  book.  If  a  text  of  scripture 
troubles  me,  I  ask  another  text  to  explain  it;  and  if  this  will 
not  answer,  I  carry  it  straight  to  the  Lord." 

Here  w-as  a  new  scheme  of  education  for  the  pulpit.  Every 
man  his  own  theological  seminary;  the  only  text  book  the 
Bible;  Christ  and  the  Holy  Spirit  the  faculty.  In  this  school 
Mr.  Moody  thought  he  might  become  a  scholar.  Thirty 
years  later  we  find  that  the  Bible  is  the  only  text  book  in  use 
in  the  Chicago  Bible  Institute. 

Mr.  Moody  was  so  much  impressed  by  these  remarks  that 
he  asked  Mr.  Moorhouse  to  show  them  how  to  study  the 
Bible.  At  a  meeting  of  fifty  or  sixty  persons  at  Mr.  Moody's 
house  there  was  held  the  first  "Bible  reading"  of  which  there 
is  any  record  in  America. 

Henceforth  Mr.  Moody  became  more  than  ever 

A  MAN  OF  ONE  BOOK. 
He  had  a  very  simple  rule  to  govern  him  in  his  choice  of  read- 


FINDS  A  LARGER  SPHERE.  123 

ing  matter:  "I  do  not  read  any  book  unless  it  will  help  me  to 
understand  The  Book." 

Besides  the  Bible  Mr.  Moody  used  constantly  Cruden's 
Concordance  and  the  compact  Bible  Text  Book,  issued  by  the 
American  Tract  Society  as  invaluable  aids  to  trace  a  single 
word  or  doctrine  through  the  various  books.  He  has  an- 
swered the  question,  "How  am  I  to  know  the  word  of  God?" 
as  follows:  "By  studying  it  with  the  help  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 
As  an  American  bishop  said,  not  with  the  blue  light  of 
Presbyterianism,  nor  the  red  Hght  of  Methodism,  nor  the 
violet  light  of  Episcopacy,  but  with  the  clear  light  of  Calvary. 
We  must  study  it  on  our  knees  in  a  teachable  spirit.  If  we 
know  our  Bible,  Satan  will  not  have  much  power  over  us,  and 
we  will  have  the  world  under  our  feet.  I  think  I  have  got  the 
key  to  the  study  of  the  Bible:  Take  it  up  topically.  Take 
'Love,'  for  instance,  and  spend  a  month  in  studying  what  the 
Bible  says  about  love,  from  Genesis  to  Revelation.  Then  you 
will  love  everybody,  whether  they  love  you  or  not.  In  the 
same  way  take  up  'Grace,'  'Faith,'  'Asurance,'  'Heaven,'  and 
so  on.  When  you  study  the  Bible,  be  sure  you  hunt  for  some, 
thing.  Spend  six  months  studying  Genesis;  it  is  the  key  to 
the  whole  book;  it  speaks  of  death,  resurrection,  judgment — 
it  is  the  seed-plant  of  the  whole  Bible.  Read  the  same  chap- 
ter over  and  over  and  over  again,  and  don't  leave  it  until  you 
have  understood  it.  About  the  twenty-eighth  time  you  have 
read  a  chapter  you  will  see  the  Man  Christ  Jesus,  who  is  on 
every  page  of  scripture.  Here  is  another  way:  Take  up  one 
word  in  a  book,  such  as  the  word  'beUeve'  of  St.  John's  gospel. 
Every  chapter  but  two  speaks  of  believing.  Look  up  the  nine- 
teen 'personal  interviews'  with  Christ  recorded  in  that  gospel. 
Take  the  'conversions'  of  the  Bible.  Take  the  seven  "blesseds,' 
and  the  seven  'overcomes'  of  Revelation.  If  you  want  to  get 
the  best  book  on  'assurance'  read  I  John,  3,  and  the  six  things 
there  worth  'knowing.'  Take  up  the  five  'precious  things'  of 
Peter,  or  the  'verily 's  of  John." 


124  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

The  visit  of  that  great  EngHsh  preacher,  Rev.  Dr.  Puiishon, 
was  also  a  great  blessing  to  him.  The  doctor  preached  for 
him  in  Farwell  Hall  several  times.  Among  others  he  preached 
his  great  sermon  on 

DANIEL  IN  BABYLON 

which  took  a  vivid  hold  on  Mr.  Moody's  imagination  and 
showed  him  that  the  characters  of  the  Bible  were  actual  men 
and  women,  different  from  other  men  only  in  their  perfect  faith 
in  God. 

During  that  whole  summer  Mr.  Moody  studied  and 
preached  the  biographies  of  the  Bible.  One  after  another  the 
old  heroes  of  faith  were  called  to  rise  before  his  vision  and 
show  themselves  to  his  amazed  and  delighted  congregations. 
Far  and  wide  he  preached  those  sermons  and  they  have  never 
lost  their  power.  They  have  been  published  in  many  forms. 
It  may  be  the  more  interesting  to  read  a  closing  page  or  two 
of  his  sermon  on  Daniel  now  the  inspiration  of  its  writing  is 
known.  In  that  scene  in  which  Mr.  Moody  describes  the 
king  coming  in  the  early  morning  to  the  lion's  den,  approach- 
ing the  very  edge  of  the  platform  as  he  does  so,  and,  in  a 
voice  trembling  with  fear  and  yet  vibrant  with  hope,  crying 
down  through  the  mouth  of  the  pit,  "O,  Daniel,  servant  of 
the  living  God,  is  thy  God,  whom  thou  servest  continually, 
able  to  deliver  thee  from  the  lions?" — in  that  scene,  which 
one  can  never  forget,  one  feels  that  his  dramatic  powers  have 
reached  their  most  thrilling  climax. 

THE  DELIVERANCE  OF  DANIEL. 

"There  must  have  been  great  excitement  throughout  all 
the  city  of  Babylon  after  the  decree  of  the  king  had  been  pro- 
claimed. How  jubilant  were  the  enemies  of  Daniel!  Their 
schemes  had  prospered.  Daniel  was  as  good  as  slain.  He 
will  never  observe  that  command  to  call  only  on  the  name  of 
the  king.  He  will  not  even  be  prudent;  he  will  not  dissemble. 
He  will  surely  be  found  at  his  window  opening  towards  Jeru- 


FINDS  A  LARGER  SPHERE.  125 

salem.  Rightly  had  they  judged  this  Hebrew  prophet.  The 
lion's  den  had  no  terrors  for  him.  He  would  rather  be  in  the 
lion's  den  with  God  than  on  the  throne  itself  without  Him. 

"And  yet  he  loved  the  king.  In  him  he  recognized  a  sov- 
ereign who  had  come  to  the  kingdom  through  the  overruHng 
providence  of  God.  He  knew  that  his  life  was  in  danger 
through  the  malice  of  his  enemies.  The  king  had  not  meant 
to  strike  him  to  death.  And  so  at  the  hours  of  prayer  he 
stretched  his  hands  out  towards  Jerusalem  and  prayed  for  the 
holy  city,  for  the  captive  people,  for  speedy  deHverance  and 
restoration  to  their  own  land  through  the  kindness  of  Darius 
the  king.  Uncertain  as  to  the  issue  of  the  decree  against 
himself,  he  may  have  prayed  with  greater  fervor  than  usual, 
when  the  watchful  spies  spring  out  of  their  hiding  places  and 
rush  off  to  the  king,  crying: 

"  'O  Darius,  live  forever!  Do  you  know  there  is  a  man  in 
your  kingdom  who  will  not  obey  you?' 

" 'A  man  who  won't  obey  me!     Who  is  he?' 

"  'Why,  that  man  Daniel.  That  Hebrew  whom  you  set  over 
us.     He  persists  in  calling  upon  his  God.' 

"And  the  moment  they  mention  the  name  of  Daniel,  a 
frown  arises  upon  the  king's  brow;and  the  thought  flashes  into 
his  mind:  'Ah!  I  have  made  a  mistake;  I  ought  never  to  have 
signed  that  decree.  I  might  have  known  that  Daniel  would 
never  'call'  upon  me.  I  know  very  well  whom  he  serves;  he 
serves  the  God  of  his  fathers.'  So,  instead  of  blaming  Dan- 
iel he  blames  himself;  instead  of  condemning  Daniel  he  con- 
demns himself.  And  then  he  casts  about  in  his  mind  as  to 
how  he  could  manage  to  preserve  him  unharmed.  All  that 
day,  if  you  could  have  looked  into  the  palace,  you  would  have 
seen  the  king  walking  up  and  down  the  halls  and  corridors, 
greatly  troubled  with  the  thought  that  this  man  must  lose  his 
life  before  the  sun  sets  on  that  Chaldean  plain;  for  if  Daniel 
were  not  in  the  lions'  den  by  sundown  the  law  of  the  Medes 


126  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

and  Persians  would  be  broken;  and  come  what  will,  that  law 
must  be  observed  and  kept. 

"Darius  loved  Daniel;  and  he  sought  in  his  heart  to  deliver 
him.  All  day  he  sought  for  some  plan  by  which  he  might 
save  Daniel,  and  yet  preserve  the  Median  law  unbroken.  But 
he  did  not  love  Daniel  as  much  as  your  King  loved  you;  he 
did  not  love  him  as  much  as  Christ  loved  us;  for  if  he  had  he 
would  have  proposed  to  have  gone  into  the  Hons'  den  in  his 
stead.  Let  us  remember  that  Christ  'tasted  death'  for  us. 
I  can  imagine  those  plotters  having  a  suspicion  as  to  the  king's 
feelings;  and  saying  to  him,  'If  you  break  the  law  which  you 
yourself  have  made,  respect  for  the  laws  of  the  Medes  and 
Persians  will  be  gone;  your  subjects  will  no  longer  obey  you; 
and  your  kingdom  will  depart  from  you.'  So  Darius  is  at 
last  compelled  to  give  him  up;  and  he  speaks  the  word  for  the 
officers  to  seize  him  and  take  him  to  the  den.  And  his  enemies 
would  take  good  care  that  the  den  is  filled  with  the  hungriest 
beasts  in  Babylon. 

"You  might  have  seen  those  officers  going  out  to  bind  that 
old  man  with  the  white  flowing  hair;  they  march  to  his  dwell- 
ing; and  they  bind  his  hands  together.  And  those  Chaldean 
soldiers  lead  captive  the  man  who  a  few  hours  before  ranked 
next  to  the  king;  the  noblest  statesman  Babylon  had  ever 
possessed.  They  guard  him  along  the  way  that  leads  to  the 
lions'  den.  Look  at  him  as  he  is  led  along  the  streets.  He 
treads  with  a  firm  and  steady  step,  bearing  himself  like  a  con- 
queror. He  trembles  not.  His  knees  arc  firm;  they  do  not 
smite  together.  The  light  of  heaven  shines  in  his  calm  face. 
And  all  heaven  is  interested  in  that  aged  man.  Disgraced 
down  here  upon  earth,  he  is  the  most  popular  man  in  heaven. 
Angels  are  delighted  in  him;  how  they  love  him  up  there!  He 
had  stood  firm;  he  had  not  deviated;  he  had  not  turned  away 
from  the  God  of  the  Bible.  And  he  walks  with  a  giant's  tread 
to  the  entrance  of  the  Hon's  den;  and  they  cast  him  in.    They 


FINDS  A  LARGER  SPHERE.  127 

roll  a  great  stone  to  the  mouth  of  the  den;  and  the  king  puts 
his  seal  upon  it.     And  so  the  law  is  kept. 

"Daniel  is  cast  into  the  den;  but  the  angel  of  God  flies  down 
and  God's  servant  lights  unharmed  at  the  bottom.  The  lions' 
mouths  are  stopped;  they  are  as  harmless  as  lambs.  And  if 
you  could  have  looked  into  that  den  you  would  have  found  a 
man  as  calm  as  a  summer  evening.  I  do  not  doubt  that  at  his 
wonted  hour  of  prayer  he  knelt  down  as  if  he  had  been  in  his 
own  chamber.  And  if  he  could  get  the  points  of  the  compass 
in  that  den  he  prayed  with  his  face  toward  Jerusalem.  He 
loved  that  city;  he  loved  the  temple;  and  probably  with  his 
face  toward  the  city  of  Jerusalem,  he  prayed  and  gave  thanks. 
And  later  on  I  can  imagine  him  just  laying  his  head  on  one  of 
the  lions,  and  going  to  sleep;  and  if  that  were  so,  no  one  in 
Babylon  slept  more  sweetly  than  Daniel  in  the  den  of  lions. 

"But  there  was  one  man  in  Babylon  who  had  no  rest  that 
night.  If  you  could  have  looked  into  the  king's  palace,  you 
would  have  seen  one  man  in  great  trouble.  Darius  did  not 
have  in  his  musicians  to  play  to  him  that  night.  Away  with 
music  and  singing!  There  was  no  feast  that  night;  he  could 
eat  nothing.  The  servants  brought  him  dainty  food;  but  he 
had  no  appetite  for  it.  He  felt  troubled;  he  could  not  sleep. 
He  had  put  in  that  den  of  lions  the  best  man  in  his  kingdom; 
and  he  upbraided  himself  for  it.  He  said  to  himself,  'How 
could  I  have  been  a  party  to  such  an  act  as  that?' 

"And  early  in  the  morning — probably  in  the  grey  dawn,  be- 
fore the  sun  has  risen — the  men  of  Babylon  could  have  heard 
the  wheels  of  the  king's  chariot  rolling  over  the  pavement; 
and  King  Darius  might  have  been  seen  driving  in  hot  haste 
to  the  lions'  den.  I  see  him  alight  from  his  chariot  in  eager 
haste,  and  hear  him  cry  down  through  the  mouth  of  the  den: 
'O  Daniel,  servant  of  the  living  God,  is  thy  God,  whom  thou 
servest  continually,  able  to  deliver  thee  from  the  lions?' 

"Hark!  a  voice  gives  answer — why,  it  is  like  a  resurrection 
voice — and  from  the  depths  come  up  to  the  king's  ear  the 


128  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

words  of  Daniel:  'O  king,  live  for  ever!  My  God  hath  sent 
His  angel,  and  hath  shut  the  lions'  mouths,  that  they  have  not 
hurt  me;  forasmuch  as  before  Him  innocency  was  found  in 
me;  and  also  before  thee,  O  king,  have  I  done  no  hurt.' 

"The  lions  could  not  harm  him.  The  very  hairs  of  his  head 
were  numbered.  I  tell  you,  that  whenever  a  man  stands  by 
God,  God  will  stand  by  him.  It  was  well  for  Daniel  that  he 
did  not  swerve.  Oh,  how  his  name  shines!  What  a  blessed 
character  he  was ! 

"The  king  gives  command  that  Daniel  should  be  taken  up 
out  of  the  den.  And,  as  he  reaches  the  top,  I  fancy  I  see  them 
embracing  one  another;  and  that  then  Daniel  mounts  the 
king's  chariot  and  is  driven  back  with  him  to  the  royal  palace. 
There  were  two  happy  men  in  Babylon  that  morning.  Most 
likely  they  sat  down  at  meat  together,  thankful  and  rejoicing. 

"  'No  manner  of  hurt  was  found  upon  him.'  The  God  who 
had  preserved  Shadrach,  Meshach  and  Abednego  in  the  fiery 
furnace,  so  that  'no  smell  of  fire  had  passed  on  them,'  had 
preserved  Daniel  from  the  jaws  of  the  lions. 

"But  Daniel's  accusers  fared  very  differently.  So  to  speak, 
they  'digged  a  pit  for  him;  and  are  fallen  into  it  themselves.' 
The  king  orders  that  Daniel's  accusers  shall  be  delivered  to 
the  same  ordeal.  And  they  were  cast  into  the  den,  'and  the 
lions  had  the  mastery  of  them,  and  brake  all  their  bones  in 
pieces  or  ever  they  came  at  the  bottom  of  the  den.' 

"Young  men,  let  us  come  out  from  the  world;  let  us  trample 
it  under  our  feet;  let  us  be  true  to  God;  let  us  stand  in  rank, 
and  keep  step,  and  fight  boldly  for  our  King!  And  our 
'crowning  time'  shall  come  by  and  by.  Yes,  the  reward  will 
come  by  and  by;  and  then  it  may  perhaps  be  said  of  one,  or 
another,  of  us:  'O  man,  greatly  beloved!'  Young  men,  your 
moral  character  is  more  than  money,  mark  that!  It  is  worth 
more  than  the  honor  of  the  world;  that  is  fleeting,  and  will 
soon  be  gone.  It  is  worth  more  than  earthly  position;  that  is 
transient  and  will  soon  be  gone.    But  to  have  God  with  you, 


Ira  D.  Sankey. 


Rev.  F.  B.  Meyer. 


FINDS  A  LARGER  SPHERE.  129 

and  to  be  with  God — what  a  grand  position!     It  is  an  eternal 
inheritance." 

To  return  to  the  narrative.  Another  of  the  great  events  in 
Mr.  Moody's  hfe  in  1871  was  his  finding  his  Jonathan  in  the 
person  of 

MR.  IRA  D.  SANKEY 
the  most  effective  gospel  singer  of  the  passing  century,  whose 
voice  so  long  retained  in  a  remarkable  degree  its  sweetness, 
its  pathos  and  its  force.  For  almost  thirty  years  he  was  Mr. 
Moody's  companion  and  fellow-laborer  in  the  gospel;  his 
voice  carrying  the  message  into  the  very  depths  of  many  souls 
that  had  remained  shut  against-the  appeals  of  the  preacher. 

It  was  in  June,  1871,  that  Dwight  L.  Moody  and  Ira  D. 
Sankey  formed  the  partnership  that  made  the  names  of 
Moody  and  Sankey  household  words  the  world  over.  No  one 
knew  the  great  evangelist  so  well  as  Mr.  Sankey.  He  had 
worked  with  him,  had  come  into  the  closest  personal  contact 
with  him  day  after  day  and  year  after  year.  In  speaking  of 
Mr.  Moody's  wonderful  work  Mr.  Sankey  said: 

"When  Dwight  L.  Moody  died  one  of  the  greatest  preachers 
of  the  century  pased  away.  We  labored  together  for  almost 
thirty  happy  years.  I  followed  him  through  life  and  I  followed 
him  on  his  last  journey — to  'Round  Top.'  Death  has  for  a 
time  put  a  stop  to  our  work  together.  Some  day,  some  blessed 
day,  in  other  worlds,  perhaps,  we  will  take  it  up  again. 

"Our  first  meeting  seemed  an  act  of  providence.  Mr. 
Moody  never  sat  down  and  folded  his  hands  and  waited  for 
the  Lord  to  bring  about  what  he  wanted.  He  did  not  beheve 
in  passive  Christianity.  So  in  this,  as  in  every  other,  he  went 
to  work,  trusting  in  the  Lord  for  success. 

MEETING  OF  IvIOODY  AND  SANKEY. 

"We  met  at  an  International  Convention  of  the  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association  in  Indianapolis,  Ind.  I  was  at  that 
time  an  assistant  collecter  of  revenue  at  my  old  home  in  New 
Castle,  Pa.  Mr.  Moody  was  just  beginning  to  win  a  reputation 


130  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

as  an  evangelist  in  Chicago.  I  had  been  singing  in  reHgious 
meetings  since  I  was  a  boy  and  doing  considerable  work  in  the 
church.  But  this  was  the  way  I  spent  my  leisure  hours.  I 
was  making  a  good  salary  and  enjoyed  my  business  too  thor- 
oughly to  think  of  giving  it  up  and  devoting  my  whole  time 
to  the  work  of  an  evangelist. 

"A  few  days  after  arriving  in  Indianapolis  I  learned  that 
Mr.  Moody,  of  whom  I  had  heard  but  whom  I  had  never  seen, 
would  conduct  a  prayer  meeting  at  a  certain  small  church.  I 
determined  to  go,  as  I  felt  an  almost  uncontrollable  desire  to 
hear  him.  I  arrived  late  and  took  a  seat  near  the  door.  Scarce- 
ly was  I  seated  when  the  Rev.  Robert  McAIillen,  whom  I 
knew  quite  well,  touched  me  on  the  elbow  and  asked  me  to 
sing  something,  as  the  singing  so  far  had  been  very  poor.  I 
started  in  with  that  ever-popular  old  hymn: 

There  is  a  fountain  filled  with  blood 

Drawn  from  Immanuel's  veins. 

The  congregation  joined  heartily  in  the  song. 

"At  the  close  of  the  service  Mr.  McMillen  invited  me  to  go 
up  and  meet  Mr,  Moody.  As  I  drew  near  he  stepped  for- 
ward, and,  taking  me  by  the  hand,  looked  at  me  in  that  keen, 
piercing  fashion  of  his,  as  if  reading  my  very  soul.  Then  he 
said  abruptly,  'Where  are  you  from?'  'Pennsylvania,'  I  re- 
plied. 'Are  you  married?'  'I  am.'  'How  many  children 
have  you?'  'Two.'  'What  is  your  business?'  'I  am  a  gov- 
ernment officer.'     'Well,  you'll  have  to  give  it  up!' 

"I  was  too  astonished  to  make  any  reply,  and  he  went  on,  as 
if  the  matter  had  already  been  decided:  'You  are  just  the  man 
for  whom  I  have  been  looking  the  last  eight  years.  You'll 
have  to  come  with  me  to  Chicago  and  help  me  in  my  work.' 

"No  other  instance  in  my  long  association  with  him  better 
illustrates  Mr.  Moody's  direct,  terse,  forceful  way  of  doing 
things  than  this.  I  might  just  as  well  have  given  up  and  joined 
him  then.  I  might  have  known  I  would  have  to  do  it.  But  I 
struggled  against  it.     A  fine  position  and  a  good  salary  were 


FINDS  A  LARGER  SPHERE.  131 

not  to  be  relinquished  at  a  moment's  notice.  Mr.  Moody  saw 
that  I  was  not  willing  to  consent  to  his  plan,  so  he  asked  me 
if  I  would  not  join  him  in  prayer  about  the  matter.  I  told  him 
I  would,  but  I  prayed  that  I  might  hold  on  to  my  office  and  my 
home. 

"The  next  day  I  got  a  card  from  Mr.  Moody  asking  me  to 
meet  him  at  a  certain  street  corner  and  sing  for  him  at  an  open 
air  meeting.  I  wrote  on  the  same  card,  'I'll  be  there.'  I 
was  there  on  time.  In  a  few  minutes  he  came  also.  He  didn't 
stop  to  speak,  but  walked  into  a  store  on  the  corner  and  bor- 
rowed a  dry-goods  box.  He  came  out  and  rolled  it  to  the 
edge  of  the  sidewalk  and  asked  me  to  sing.  I  did  so,  and  a 
crowd  began  to  collect  around  us.  Mr.  Moody  got  up  on  the 
box  and  began  to  preach — as  I  never  heard  any  man  preach 
before.  His  hearers  were  electrified.  They  hung  on  his 
every  word.  They  were  mostly  workingmen,  going  home  to 
their  suppers.  They  forgot  that  they  were  tired  and  hungry. 
The  crowd  grew  so  dense  around  us  that  we  had  to  close,  and 
Mr.  Moody  said  that  he  was  gomg  to  hold  another  meeting  at 
the  Academy  of  Music.  We  started  down  the  street,  singing 
as  we  went.  And  the  crowd,  with  their  dinner  pails,  followed 
us,  filling  the  main  floor  of  the  building,  and  again  he  spoke 
to  the  crowd  of  men  of  all  classes  with  such  power  and  pathos 
as  moved  hundreds  to  tears.  He  had  but  a  few  minutes  to 
preach,  and  seeing  that  the  convention  was  gathering  to  dis- 
cuss the  question,  'How  to  Reach  the  Masses,'  he  closed  with 
a  very  short  prayer  and  dismissed  the  meeting. 

"The  next  step,  several  months  later,  was  that  Mr.  Moody 
invited  me  to  spend  a  week  with  him  in  Chicago.     I  went. 

"When  the  week  was  over  I  resigned  my  position  and 
joined  forces  with  him  for  our  life  work.  The  result  will  never 
be  fully  known. 

"Mr.  Moody's  simple,  direct  manner  of  work  has  often 
been  described.  His  tremendous  earnestness,  his  indomita- 
ble energy,  his  lovable  personahty,  and  above  all  and  through 


132  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

all,  his  thorough  goodness,  won  him  the  hearts  of  millions. 
No  one  could  meet  him  without  admiring  him.  No  one  could 
know  him  without  loving  him.  The  rich,  the  learned,  the 
poor,  the  happy  and  the  miserable — convicts  shut  in  by  iron 
bars  and  the  great  ones  of  earth — alike  found  that  Mr.  Moody 
had  a  message  for  each  and  every  one  of  them.  In 
England,  Mr.  Gladstone  attended  our  meetings  at  the  Agricul- 
tural Hall  in  London.  John  Bright  was  another  great  man 
who  listened  to  Mr.  Moody  with  the  keenest  pleasure.  The 
Princess  of  Wales  came  often  to  our  services  at  Her  Majesty's 
Opera  House  in  the  Haymarket,  and  so  did  the  Duchess  of 
Sutherland.  The  Duchess  of  Teck,  formerly  Princess  May, 
was  also  an  attendant  at  our  meetings. 

"We  have  often  been  asked  to  estimate  the  number  of  our 
converts.  This  is  an  impossibility.  Mr.  Moody  always  re- 
plied to  this  question:  'Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  never 
number  their  converts;  God  alone  knows  who  were  converted 
and  who  not.'  One  of  the  largest  meetings  we  ever  held 
was  in  Agricultural  Hall,  London,  when  we  had  17,000  men 
present.  In  many  places  we  filled  halls  holding  from  10,000 
to  12,000  people. 

"Mr.  Moody  never  tried  to  exalt  himself — never  thought 
of  himself.  He  made  no  attempt  at  fine  speeches  or  rhetori- 
cal phrasing.  He  once  said:  'Christ  talked  in  parables.  Oh, 
how  I  wish  I  could  talk  in  parables!  I  would  if  I  knew  enough.' 

"In  1879  Mr.  Moody,  who  said  that  he  had  for  some  time 
been  impressed  with  the  idea  of  founding  a  school  for  those  in 
the  humbler  walks  of  life^  established  the  Northfield  Semi- 
nary. Here  the  discipline  and  influences  are  such  as  will 
give  the  best  results  in  the  development  of  character.  In  1881 
he  founded  the  Mount  Hermon  school  for  young  men  and 
boys.  Then  his  unflagging  energy  caused  him  to  turn  his  at- 
tention toward  the  need  for  similar  institutions  in  the  west, 
and  in  Chicago,  by  his  untiring  effort,  he  started  the  school 
known  as  the  Bible  Institute  for  Home  and  Foreign  Missions. 


FINDS  A  LARGER  SPHERE.  133 

Much  of  the  money  he  collected  went  to  the  support  of  these 
institutions  and  for  educational  work  of  all  kinds. 

"One  of  the  greatest  compliments  to  his  preaching  was 
that  the  sermon  that  would  hold  the  rapt  attention  of  the  most 
intelligent  of  his  congregation  would  also  be  listened  to  with 
the  same  eagerness  by  the  children  present.  Any  one — every 
one — understood  what  he  said.  His  meaning  was  clear  to 
every  child;  it  was  also  convincing  to  the  old.  No  other  preach- 
er ever  mastered  this  art — if  anything  connected  with  Mr. 
Moody  may  be  called  an  art — of  reaching  the  understanding 
of  old  and  young  at  the  same  time.  His  simplicity  of  lan- 
guage was  remarkable.  The  strong  individuality  of  the  man 
spoke  out  in  every  sentence.  The  beauty  of  his  powerful  na- 
ture shone  in  his  works. 

"One  of  the  reasons  of  his  phenomenal  success  in  bringing 
souls  to  God  was  that  he  believed  absolutely,  implicitly  in  the 
message  he  gave  to  men.  His  faith  was  the  faith  of  a  little 
child.  No  higher  criticisms,  no  doubts  ever  dimmed  his  faith 
in  the  word  of  God.  To  him  it  was  the  truth,  and  the  whole 
truth. 

"Now  the  world  grieves  that  one  of  the  noblest  souls  of 
earth  has  passed  beyond  our  ken.  Our  comfort  lies  in  the 
fact  that  one  day — 'when  the  mists  have  rolled  away' — we  will 
meet  him  again." 


The  Great  Chicago  Fire. 

T  was  on  the  night  of  the  eighth  of  October,  187 1,  and 
the  clay  following  that  the  fire-fiend  came  down  upon 
the  ill-fated  city  of  Chicago.  It  cut  through  the  very 
heart  of  the  great  city,  swept  across  the  river  to  the 
north,  burned  up  more  than  14,000  dwelling  houses, 
left  over  100,000  people  homeless,  most  of  them  penniless,  and 
having  consumed  nearly  $200,000,000  worth  of  property  and 
hundreds  of  lives,  it  was  blown  out  over  the  lake  and  vanished. 

The  city  of  Chicago  is  divided  by  the  river  and  its  branches 
into  three  principal  divisions,  North,  South,  and  West.  The 
north  and  south  branches  unite  at  a  point  not  quite  a  mile  from 
the  lake  shore,  and  flowing  east  to  the  lake  form  the  boundary 
between  the  north  and  south  divisions.  The  west  division 
includes  all  lying  to  the  west  of  either  branch.  From  the  lake 
shore,  extending  for  miles  up  either  branch  was  one  contin- 
uous line  of  coal  yards,  lumber  yards,  grain  elevators,  factor- 
ies, warehouses  and  railroad  buildings.  Beyond  these  in  the 
west  division  is  a  residence  quarter.  The  "business  quarter" 
in  the  south  division  contained  practically  all  the  wholesale 
mercantile  establishments,  splendid  retail  stores,  public  build- 
ings, such  as  post  office,  custom  house,  court  house,  city  hall, 
two  grand  union  depots,  hotels,  theatres,  newspaper  offices 
and  all  other  great  institutions  to  be  found  in  the  heart  of  a 
city.  To  the  south  of  the  business  section  was  the  most  ele- 
gant residence  district  in  the  city. 

The  north  division,  along  the  river,  was  occupied  by  stores 
and  factories,  above  them  the  residence  quarters  extended  to 
Lincoln  Park.  On  a  few  streets  and  squares  lying  near,  or 
parallel  to  the  lake,  were  to  be  found  the  residences  of  the 
more  wealthy  business  men,  the  rest  of  the  district  being 
densely  populated  by  the  humbler  classes. 

The  severest  drought  in  many  seasons  was  still  prevailing 


THE  GREAT  CHICAGO  FIRE.  135 

at  Chicago  and  throughout  the  northwest,  and  a  very  severe 
gale  had  for  several  days  been  blowing  from  the  southwest. 
On  Saturday  night,  October  7th,  there  had  been  a  $1,000,000 
fire  on  the  west  side  of  the  river  along  the  south  branch.  It 
had  been  the  grandest  spectacle  ever  witnessed;  but  the 
rapidity  with  which  the  flames  licked  up  that  poor  quarter 
made  the  people  shudder  as  they  saw  to  what  dangers  they 
might  be  exposed.  But  that  lire  had  died  out  and  no  one 
dreamed  of  the  horrors  that  awaited  them. 

.Whether  the  cackling  of  geese  ever  saved  Rome  or  not,  it 
is  certain  that  the  kicking  over  of  a  lamp  by  a  vicious  cow 
about  nine  o'clock  on  Sunday  evening  caused  a  more  terrible 
conflagration  than  Nero  rejoiced  over  when  he  saw  Rome 
burning.  If  that  poor  Irishwoman  had  only  milked  that  cow 
before  dark,  or  if  she  hadn't  milked  her  at  all  that  night! — but 
the  cow  did  kick  over  that  miserable  coal-oil  lamp,  and  the 
funeral  pyre  of  Chicago's  early  splendor  was  fatefuUy  kindled. 
By  the  time  the  alarm  could  be  sounded  three  or  four  tinder- 
boxes  were  on  fire,  and  in  five  minutes  the  miserable  houses 
of  that  western  district  were  blazing  like  a  huge  bonfire.  The 
fire  department  were  on  the  ground  in  a  few  minutes,  but  they 
might  as  well  have  been  in  Alaska,  as  their  engines  were 
swiftly  caught  in  the  flames  and  left  to  destruction. 

The  fire  flew  on  the  wings  of  the  gale  until  it  reached  the 
edge  of  the  district  burned  over  Saturday  night,  and  then  with 
a  wild  howl  of  fiendish  delight  the  flames  spanned  the  river  on 
a  whirlwind's  arch  and  the  fate  of  the  city  was  sealed. 

The  Fire-Fiend — we  wish  there  were  a  more  terrible  name 
— the  Fire-Fiend,  with+iair  of  streaming  flame  rushed  straight 
through  the  heart  of  the  splendid  commercial  quarter,  while 
from  either  hand  fire-brands  were  flung  far  on  either  side, 
kindling  fires  that  swept  along  a  path  a  mile  wide  and  an  hour 
in  the  rear.  The  rookeries  were  burned  like  match  boxes, 
but  could  not  these  magnificent  "fire-proof"  buildings  of  iron, 
granite  and  marble,  the  superior  of  which  at  that  time  did  not 


136  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

exist  in  the  land,  could  not  th""ese  withstand  the  whirlwind  of 
flame?  Vain  hope!  Before  this  blast  of  seven-fold  heated 
flame  and  rain  of  blazing  fire  brands  everything  went  down. 
At  one  o'clock  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  was  attacked  and 
yielded  as  in  a  moment.  The  court  house  was  next  seized 
upon,  the  hundred  and  fifty  prisoners  in  the  basement  being 
released  from  a  doom  as  fearful  as  a  Nebuchadnezzar's  fur- 
nace— but  it  did  not  surrender  till  three  o'clock,  when  the 
great  bell  gave  way,  pealing  forth  as  it  fell,  a  farewell  dying 
groan. 

Only  to  a  Chicagoan  perhaps,  does  it  matter  that  we  recall 
how  swiftly  fell  Hooley's  Opera  House,  the  Times  Building,  or 
Crosby's  magnificent  opera  house,  which  was  to  have  been 
opened  that  very  night.  The  flames  lingered  awhile  to  whet 
their  fury  against  the  seven-storied,  marble  fronted  Sherman 
House,  and  the  Tremont  House.  The  magnificent  trade  pal- 
aces of  Field,  Leiter  &  Co.,  of  J.  V.  Farwell  &  Co.,  Carson 
Pirie  &  Co.,  and  many  others,  involving  a  $10,000,000  loss 
soon  disappeared  in  the  flames.  The  isolated  and  "fire-proof" 
post  office,  with  some  two  millions  of  treasure  in  its  vaults  also 
fell  an  easy  prey  to  the  fierce  storm. 

The  belated  right  wing  of  the  fiery  demon  now  came  sweep- 
ing up,  gutting  the  Michigan  Southern  Depot,  and  the  Grand 
Pacific  Hotel,  reaching  out  to  Wabash  and  Michigan  avenues, 
leveling  the  First  and  Second  Presbyterian  Churches,  the 
Trinity  (Episcopal),  Church,  also  the  palatial  "Terrace  Row" 
of  residences.  Soon  it  joined  the  central  path  of  the  storm 
and  the  destruction  of  the  "business  quarter"  was  complete. 
Only  one  large  brick  building,  with  ilron  shutters,  near  the 
river,  came  out  of  this  seething  furnace  and  tornado  of  fire 
and  remained  a  monument  of  the  past.  The  destruction  in 
the  south  division  was  finished.  The  greatest  suffering  was 
yet  to  fall  on  the  north  side. 

Thousands  of  the  people  were  gathered  on  the  streets  lead- 
ing to  the  bridges  across  the  river,  watching  the  fearful  specta- 


THE  GREAT  CHICAGO  FIRE.  137 

cle  of  the  burning  city.  Up  until  two  A.  M.  the  bridges  were 
still  in  use,  but  the  showers  of  falling  fire  made  the  streets 
along  the  river  impassable.  Terrified,  however,  by  the  roar  of 
the  conflagration  and  the  fear  that  it  might  leap  the  river,  the 
entire  population  seemed  to  be  aroused.  Lights  were  seen  in 
all  the  houses,  swift  moving  figures  could  be  seen  in  the  rooms. 
Everywhere  people  were  carrying  goods  out  of  their  houses, 
when  suddenly  it  was  shouted  through  the  streets  that  the 
water  works  were  on  fire.  They  were  situated  about  a  mile 
from  the  river;  yet  the  fire-brands  had  been  hurled  with  deadly 
strategy  upon  the  engine  house  and  the  water  supply  would 
soon  be  cut  oft. 

To  their  horror  the  people  now  found  themselves  suddenly 
surrounded  by  fire.  There  was  at  once  a  stampede  for  life — 
to  the  eastward,  to  the  sands  of  the  lake  shore;  to  the  west- 
ward, to  the  prairies,  if  they  could  reach  them.  But  we  will 
let  an  eye-witness  describe  the  scene: 

"Besides  its  foothold  at  the  water  works,  from  which  the  fire 
spread  rapidly  in  every  direction,  it  soon  made  a  landing  in 
two  of  the  elevators  near  the  river,  and  organized  an  advance 
which  consumed  every  thing  left  by  the  scores  of  separate  ir- 
ruptions which  the  fiames  were  constantly  making  in  unex- 
pected places.  This  was  the  system  by  which  the  north  divi- 
sion was  wiped  out;  blazing  brands  and  scorching  heat  sent 
ahead  to  kindle  many  scattering  fires,  and  the  grand  general 
conflagration  following  up  and  finishing  up.  Within  the  limits 
marked  by  the  fire  lines,  nothing  was  spared;  not  any  of  the 
elegant  residences  of  the  patricians — not  even  those  isolated 
by  acres  of  pleasure  grounds;  not  even  the  "fire-proof"  His- 
torical Hall,  with  its  thousand  precious  relics;  not  even  the 
stone  churches  of  Robert  Collyer  and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Chamber- 
lain, protected  by  a  park  in  front ;  not  even  the  cemetery  to  the 
north,  whither  many  people  removed  a  few  of  their  most 
necessary  effects,  only  to  see  them  consumed  before  their 
eyes;  not  even  Lincoln  Park,  whose    scattering    oaks    were 


138  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

burned  to  dismal  pollards  by  the  all-consuming  flames;  noth- 
ing but  one  lone  house,  the  residence  of  Mahlon  Ogden, 
which  now  stands  as  the  sole  survivor  of  the  scourged  dis- 
trict. The  loss  of  life  and  the  sufferings  of  those  who  man- 
aged to  escape  with  life  were  severest  in  this  quarter  of  the 
city.  Only  at  the  lake  and  the  northern  limits  of  the  city  was 
the  conflagration  stayed — or,  rather,  spent — for  the  lack  of 
any  thing  to  consume. 

"The  sensations  conveyed  to  the  spectator  of  this  unparal- 
leled event,  either  through  the  eye,  the  ear,  or  other  senses  or 
sympathies,  can  not  be  adequately  described,  and  any  attempt 
to  do  it  but  shows  the  poverty  of  language.  As  a  spectacle, 
it  was  beyond  doubt  the  grandest  as  well  as  most  appalling 
ever  offered  to  mortal  eyes.  From  any  elevated  standpoint, 
the  appearance  was  that  of  a  vast  ocean  of  flame,  sweeping  in 
mile-long  billows  and  breakers  over  the  doomed  city.  A 
square  of  substantial  buildings  would  be  submerged  by  it  like 
a  child's  tiny  heap  of  sand  on  the  beach  of  a  lake;  and  when 
the  flood  receded,  there  was  no  more  left  of  the  stately  block 
than  of  the  tiny  sand-heap." 

It  was  in  the  north  division  that  the  fatalities  were  the  most 
numerous  and  shocking.  There,  especially  in  the  quarter  ad- 
joining the  river  and  north  of  Chicago  avenue,  which  was 
thickly  covered  with  the  cottages  of  the  poor,  the  flames  ran 
along  as  fast  as  a  man  could  walk,  and^  what  was  worse,  was 
constantly  leaping  to  new  points,  both  due  forward  and  later- 
ally, and  propagating  itself  faster  than  its  victims  could  possi- 
bly flee  before  it,  even  if  they  had  not  attempted  to  save  any 
of  their  goods.  It  was  in  this  way  that  the  monster  devoured 
hundreds  with  his  fiery  breath.  Within  three  blocks  of  Chi- 
cago avenue,  on  an  area  of  not  more  than  forty  acres,  there 
were  found  the  bodies  of  forty-five  poor  creatures,  none  of 
which  were  recognizable,  but  which  were  undoubtedly  the 
German  and  Scandinavian  people  inhabiting  that  quarter.  The 
rapidity  of  the  flames  alone,  however,  would  not  have  caused 


THE  GREAT  CHICAGO  FIRE.  139 

the  destruction  of  so  many  lives,  but  for  the  combination  of 
other  circumstances  which  worked  fatally.  There  was  a  gen- 
eral hegira  across  all  the  bridges  leading  to  the  west  side. 
Chicago  avenue  was  the  best  of  the  thoroughfares  tending  in 
this  direction.  Through  this  the  people  poured  like  the  moun- 
tain torrent  through  its  too  narrow  gorge.  All  at  once,  when 
the  fiercest  blast  of  the  monster  furnace  had  begun  to  sweep 
through  this  section  with  heat  which  threatened  death  to 
thousands,  it  was  discovered  that  the  bridge  was  for  the  time 
impassable.  The  people  were  rushing,  tumbUng,  storming 
toward  it  in  terribly  irresistible  numbers.  Those  who  were 
nearest  the  burning  bridge  could  not  turn  back  because  of 
the  pressure  of  the  frantic  multitude.  They  attempted  to 
make  a  stand  by  passing  along  the  word  to  beat  back  the  on- 
surging  mass  of  men,  and  women  and  horses  and  wagons. 
But  the  task  was  simply  impossible,  as  at  the  rearmost  the 
crowd  were  now  fairly  lashed  by  the  flames  and  could  not  stop. 
Whether  the  foremost  hundreds  would  or  not,  they  were 
forced  to  turn  to  the  northward  and  attempt  to  escape  through 
the  burning  streets  to  North  avenue,  half  a  mile  further  north, 
where  was  another  bridge.  Into  the  vortex  of  flame  they 
plunge — may  heaven  send  them  guidance  through  it!  Out 
from  that  vortex  of  flame  some  two-score  of  them  never 
emerge.  Alas!  they  knew  not  that  those  streets  had  no  out- 
lets over  the  river  for  some  three  hundreds  yards  or  more. 
But  for  the  fact  that  most  of  the  streets  were  "thorough- 
fares," leading  out  to  the  prairies  and  fields  to  the  west  and 
north,  that  fearful  fire  sweeping  over  the  three  miles  of  resi- 
dences in  barely  six  hours  would  have  mown  down  the  people 
by  the  thousands. 

THE  NIGHT  AFTER  THE  FIRE. 

All  day  Monday  the  fire  raged  through  the  north  division — 
but  its  progress  was  watched  with  dazed  eyes.  The  fierce 
struggles  of  the  night  and  early  morning  were  over.     Hope 


140  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

and  fear  alike  had  died  out  and  only  the  apathy  of  despair  was 
left,  and  dumb  endurance.  The  thousands  who  had  escaped 
into  Lincoln  Park  were  comparatively  happy  as  at  least  there 
was  no  more  danger  from  fire  and  there  was  room  to  rest. 

But  among  the  multitudes  caught  on  The  Sands  between  the 
river  and  the  lake  the  suflferings  at  times  were  intense.  The 
people  were  pent  up  in  their  uncomfortable  prison,  surrounded 
on  the  west  and  north  by  walls  of  living  flame,  that  sometimes 
the  blasts  of  terrible  fire  would  sweep  in  upon  them  driving 
them  far  out  into  the  lake,  where  they  would  submerge  them- 
selves to  their  necks,  and  being  compelled  to  keep  their  heads 
drenched  as  tlie  only  protection  against  the  scorching  air  and 
showers  of  fire  brands.  Here  mothers  stood,  holding  babes 
in  their  arms,  and  liable  at  any  moment  of  panic  among  those 
still  on  the  shore  of  being  pushed  beyond  their  depth.  In- 
deed, it  was  reported  that  a  number  were  drowned  in  this  way. 

On  The  Sands  were  also  a  great  number  of  horses  that  had 
escaped  or  been  taken  from  their  stables,  and  the  women  and 
children  were  in  constant  terror  of  being  trampled  to  death  in 
their  wild  fury.  Worse  even  than  these  were  the  human  brutes 
— the  vilest  of  the  vile — who  had  broken  into  the  saloons  as 
they  had  fled,  and  had  taken  great  quantities  of  liquor  with 
them.  These  men  and  women  made  the  night,  as  the  day, 
hideous  with  their  bowlings  and  curses,  their  carousals  and 
their  fightings  until  they  sank  in  beastly  drunkenness  on  the 
beach. 

Hunger  now  began  to  add  its  torments  to  those  which  the 
fear  of  death,  anxiety  for  missing  relatives  and  friends,  ^nd 
the  continued  exposure  were  inflicting  upon  them.  None  of 
these  fugitives  had  tasted  food  since  early  Sunday  evening, 
so  that  Monday  night,  although  less  fearful  and  exciting  than 
Sunday,  was  one  of  greater  suffering.  Chilled  by  the  water, 
yet  blistered  by  the  heat,  exhausted  by  hunger  and  almost 
crazed  with  fear — what  a  horrible  night  they  passed!  Outlet 
there  was  none,  help  there  was  none,  hope  there  was  none,  ex- 


THE  GREAT  CHICAGO  FIRE.  141 

cept  that  their  vitality  might  endure  until  this  fierce  whirlwind 
of  flaming  fire  should  have  exhausted  its  pitiless  wrath. 

Fearful  as  had  been  the  devastation  of  the  fire  it  had  not 
consumed  the  energy  nor  daunted  the  spirit  of  Chicago's 
great  business  men.  From  a  city  in  New  York  came  a  tele- 
gram from  Mr.  Potter  Palmer  that  rang  out  in  clarion  tones: 
"I  will  rebuild  all  my  buildings  at  once.  Put  on  an  extra  force 
and  hurry  up  the  hotel."  Within  a  few  days  he  telegraphed 
the  New  York  merchants:  "The  mercantile  firms  with  which  I 
am  connected,  either  as  special  or  general  partner,  will  pay 
in  full  at  maturity." 

We  have  only  space  for  brief  extracts  from  the  Chicago 
Tribune,  which  on  Wednesday  gave  a  twelve  column  account 
of  the  fire  and  sounded  out  a  rousing  call  for  every  man  in 
Chicago  to  do  his  duty. 

CHEER  UP. 

"In  the  midst  of  a  calamity  without  parallel  in  the  world's 
history,  looking  upon  the  ashes  of  thirty  years'  accumulations, 
the  people  of  this  once  beautiful  city  have  resolved  that  Chica- 
go shall  rise  again! 

"With  woe  on  every  hand,  with  death  in  many  strange 
places,  with  two  or  three  hundred  millions  of  our  hard  earned 
property  swept  away  in  a  few  hours,  the  hearts  of  our  men 
and  women  are  still  brave,  and  they  look  into  the  future  with 
undaunted  hearts.  As  there  has  never  been  such  a  calamity, 
so  has  there  never  been  such  cheerful  fortitude  in  the  face  of 
desolation  and  ruin. 

"Thanks  to  the  blessed  charity  of  the  good  people  of  the 
United  States,  we  shall  not  suffer  from  hunger  or  nakedness 
in  this  trying  time.  Hundreds  of  train-loads  of  provisions  are 
coming  forward  to  us  with  all  speed  from  every  quarter,  from 
Maine  to  Omaha.  Some  have  already  arrived — more  will 
reach  us  before  these  words  are  printed.  Three-fourths  of 
our  inhabited  area  is  still  saved.    The  water  supply  will  be 


142  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

speedily  renewed.  Steam  fire  engines  from  a  dozen  neighbor- 
ing cities  have  already  arrived,  and  more  are  on  their  way.  It 
seems  impossible  that  any  further  progress  should  be  made  by 
the  flames,  or  that  any  new  fire  should  break  out  that  would 
not  be  instantly  extinguished. 

"Already  contracts  have  been  made  for  rebuilding  some 
of  the  burned  blocks,  and  the  clearing  away  of  the  debris  will 
commence  to-day,  if  the  heat  is  so  far  subdued  that  the 
charred  material  can  be  handled.  Field,  Leiter  &  Co.  and 
John  V.  Farwell  &  Co.,  will  recommence  business  to  day. 
The  money  and  securities  in  all  the  banks  are  safe.  The  rail- 
roads are  working  with  all  their  energies  to  bring  us  out  of 
our  affliction.  The  three  hundred  millions  of  capital  invested 
in  these  roads  is  bound  to  see  us  through.  They  have  been 
built  with  special  reference  to  a  great  commercial  mart  at 
this  place,  and  they  can  not  fail  to  sustain  us.  Chicago  must 
rise  again. 

"We  do  not  belittle  the  calamity  that  has  befallen  us.  The 
world  has  probably  never  seen  the  like  oi  it — certainly  not 
since  Moscow  burned.  But  the  forces  of  nature,  no  less  than 
the  forces  of  reason  require  that  the  exchanges  of  a  great  re- 
gion should  be  conducted  here.  Ten,  twenty  years  may  be 
required  to  reconstruct  our  fair  city,  but  the  capital  to  rebuild 
it  fire  proof  will  be  forthcoming.  The  losses  we  have  suffered 
must  be  borne;  but  the  place,  the  time,  and  the  men  are  here, 
to  commence  at  the  bottom  and  work  up  again;  not  at  the 
bottom,  either,  for  we  have  credit  in  every  land,  and  the  ex- 
perience of  one  upbuilding  of  Chicago  to  help  us.  Let  us  all 
cheer  up,  save  what  is  yet  left,  and  we  shall  come  out  all  right. 
The  Christian  world  is  coming  to  our  relief.  The  worst  is 
already  over.  In  a  few  days  more  all  the  dangers  will  be  past, 
and  we  can  resume  the  battle  of  life  with  Christian  faith  and 
western  grit.     Let  us  all  cheer  up!" 

THE  RELIEF  WORK  IN  CHICAGO. 

In  this  hour  of  direst  calamity,  there  was,  fortunately,  a  Re- 


THE  GREAT  CHICAGO  FIRE.  143 

lief  and  Aid  Society  already  in  existence  most  admirably 
adapted  to  care  for  the  tens  of  thousands  of  distressed  and 
homeless  people.  It  was  an  incorporated  institution  and  in 
its  directory  were  some  of  the  very  best  men  in  the  city,  Mr. 
George  M.  Pullman  being  the  treasurer.  To  this  society  on 
Friday  following  the  fire,  the  mayor  intrusted  the  entire  work 
of  relief. 

From  a  report  made  by  the  Chicago  Relief  and  Aid  Society 
on  November  7th,  scarcely  four  weeks  after  the  fire,  we  learn 
that  the  contributions  received  amounted  to  the  handsome 
sum  of  $2,051,023.55;  that  already  over  4000  small  houses  of 
two  rooms  had  been  erected  to  shelter  the  homeless,  con- 
taining the  cook-stove,  bed,  table  and  necessary  crockery — at 
a  total  cost  of  only  $1 10  each. 

It  was  intended  to  build  about  7000  more,  and  thus  over 
50,000  of  the  homeless  would  be  housed  for  the  winter.  At  that 
date  some  60,000  persons  were  being  fed  daily.  A  committee 
sent  from  Philadelphia,  of  which  Mr.  George  H.  Stuart  was 
chairman,  visited  Chicago  the  second  week  after  the  fire  and 
reported  that  the  work  of  the  society  was  being  carried  on  in 
the  most  systematic  and  careful  manner  and  was  worthy  of  the 
utmost  support  of  a  generous  public. 

In  this  whirlwind  of  fire  Mr.  Moody  witnessed  the 

DESTRUCTION  OF  FARWELL  HALL 

and  the  church  so  dear  to  his  heart,  the  scene  of  most  precious 
revivals.  His  own  cottage  home,  and  the  dwellings  of  most 
of  his  members,  were  all  consumed  to  ashes,  with  nothing 
saved  but  what  they  could  carry  in  their  hands.  His  family, 
also,  had  to  flee  for  their  lives,  and,  as  Mr.  Moody  said,  he 
saved  nothing  but  his  reputation  and  his  Bible. 

From  the  site  of  the  Illinois  Street  Church  in  every  direc- 
tion as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach  only  ruins  could  be  seen. 
The  relief  department  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Asocia- 
tion  became  one  of  the  chief  depositories  of  food  and  clothing 


144  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

and  these  Mr.  Moody  with  his  usual  lavish  generosity,  delight- 
ed to  distribute  to  all  the  ragged,  hungry  and  homeless  ones 
who  applied.  Complaint  being  made  that  many  unworthy 
persons  were  making  spoils  out  of  these  supplies,  he  turned 
the  work  over  to  the  Relief  and  Aid  Society,  and  started  east 
to  hold  religious  meetings  and  solicit  means  to  rebuild  his 
church.  Mr.  Sankey  meanwhile  returned  to  his  family  in 
Pennsylvania  and  resumed  his  convention  work. 

In  Brooklyn  Mr.  Moody  found  a  hearty  welcome  extended 
to  him  by  Rev.  Dr.  Cuyler  and  a  new  mission  chapel  was  put 
at  his  disposal.  It  was  but  a  few  days  before  the  power  of 
the  Lord  fell  upon  the  congregations  and  a  great  revival  broke 
out  which  reached  into  the  home  church,  and  multitudes  were 
asking,  "What  must  I  do  to  be  saved?"  From  Brooklyn  Mr. 
Moody  went  to  Philadelphia,  where  a  still  more  hearty  wel- 
come awaited  him  at  the  hands  of  Mr.  George  H.  Stuart,  who 
had  then  returned  from  his  visit  to  Chicago.  He  had  become 
specially  interested  in  the  work  of  that  great  school  of  a  thous- 
and children  who  were  now  left  shelterless. 

"Those  who  knew  what  Mr,  Moody  had  done  for  Chicago 
felt  that  in  the  rebuilding  of  the  city  that  church  and  Sabbath 
school  must  not  be  left  out.  An  appeal  signed  by  Mr.  Buch- 
er,  Dr.  Hall,  John  Wanamaker  and  others,  including  myself, 
was  issued  to  the  Christian  public  asking  for  contributions  for 
this  purpose.  I  was  designated  treasurer."  Thus  writes  Mr. 
Stuart.  But  finding  that  the  contributions  were  coming  in 
very  slowly  they  said  one  day:  "Mr.  Moody,  how  much  mon- 
ey  do  you  need?"  "If  I  had  a  thousand  dollars  I  could  build 
a  great  box  that  would  hold  my  Sunday  school,"  was  the  reply. 
"You  shall  have  three  thousand  at  least,"  they  answered,  and 
they  kept  their  word. 

A  lot  was  purchased  at  the  corner  of  Chicago  avenue  and 
LaSalle  street,  one  hundred  and  nine  feet  by  seventy-five;  and 
as  his  subscription  list  kept  increasing,  he  urged  the  brethren 
to  build  large.    He  had  faith  for  the  future.    Thus  by  the 


Prof.  Henry  Drummond. 


Rev.    G.    Campbell    Alorgail.  Copyright  1900  by  F.  Gutekunst. 


THE  GREAT  CHICAGO  FIRE.  145 

gifts  of  his  friends  and  the  free  labor  of  his  impoverished  con- 
gregation, a  great  enclosure  of  rough  boards  was  erected,  cov- 
ering the  entire  lot  and  looking  like  a  street-car  stable,  with  its 
flat  gravel  and  tar  roof,  supported  by  lines  of  posts  and  beams. 
But  the  best  thing  about  it  was  that  it  would  hold  lots  of  peo- 
ple. As  it  neared  completion  Mr.  Moody  returned  to  Chica- 
go, telegraphed  Mr.  Sankey  to  come  at  once,  and  the  day  for 
the  opening  of  the  school  was  fixed.  But  where  were  his  scat- 
tered flock  to  come  from?  Only  a  few  buildings  were  in  sight, 
except  here  and  there  some  of  the  small  dwelHngs  erected  by 
the  Relief  Society;  and  the  friends  somewhat  anxiously  looked 
out  over  the  blackened  and  ruined  district.  To  their  joy  and 
surprise  the  children  began  to  gather  in  crowds  as  if  springing 
out  of  every  heap  of  rubbish  and  half-filled  cellar,  and  some 
from  miles  away  to  the  west.  And  the  house — the  barn — was 
filled  with  a  crowd  of  a  thousand  children,  many  of  the  par- 
ents coming  with  them.  Once  more  the  church  becomes  a 
mission  and 

THE  NEW  TABERNACLE 
becomes  a  greater  blessing  than  the  old  North  Market  Hall. 

Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  at  once  took  up  their  lodg- 
ings in  one  of  the  class  rooms,  with  a  faithful  teacher  in  the 
Sunday  school  as  steward,  cook  and  man-of-all-work.  The 
building  was  kept  warm  night  and  day,  and  was  always  open 
to  any  hungry,  homeless  wanderers  who  might  choose  to 
enter.  It  was  also  a  depot  of  suppHes  and  provisions  and 
these  were  now  at  his  own  hand  for  distribution.  A  hungry 
man  was  always  more  than  welcome  at  his  table  in  the  class- 
room. On  Sundays  the  services  must  have  been  a  very  feast 
of  tabernacles,  of  thanksgiving,  and  praise  for  blessings  spir- 
itual and  temporal,  as  the  following  program  for  the  day  will 
show : 

Nine  o'clock — The  Lord's  Supper.     Half-past  ten — Preach- 
ing by  Mr.  Moody.    After  service — Dinner  in  the  class  room 
with  the  teachers,  and  conversation    on    the    day's    lessons. 
10 


146  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

Three  o'clock — Sunday  school,  Mr.  Moody  superintending. 
After  school — Teachers'  prayer  meeting,  led  by  Mr.  Moody; 
then  supper  in  the  class  room.  After  supper — Yoke-fellows' 
prayer  meeting.  Half-past  seven — Preaching  by  Mr.  Moody. 
After  service — Inquiry  meeting,  lasting  as  long  as  there  were 
any  inquirers  needing  counsel. 

During  several  months  of  1871  Mr.  Moody  had  passed 
through  a  terrible  struggle  of  soul  with  respect  to  himself  and 
his  work.  One  great  torment  of  his  soul  was  the  thought 
that  he  was  such  an  ignorant  man.  He  used  to  weep  and 
pray  in  an  agony  in  his  closet.  He  was  constantly  begging 
his  friends  to  pray  for  him.  Having  made  the  acquaintance  of 
two  aged  women  who  were  remarkable  for  their  lives  of  faith 
in  spite  of  great  affliction,  he  used  to  go  to  them  like  a  broken- 
hearted boy  and  ask  them  to  teach  him  how  to  trust  wholly  in 
God.     At  last  the  answer  came  in 

A  NEW  BAPTISM 

and  an  entire  consecration  in  the  sunshine  of  faith  that  knew 
no  shadow  of  doubt.  He  once  spoke  of  this  struggle  in  a 
prayer  meeting  talk  in  New  York  City,  saying: 

"About  four  years  ago  I  got  into  a  cold  state.  It  did  not 
seem  as  if  there  was  any  unction  resting  upon  my  ministry. 
For  four  long  months  God  seemed  to  be  just  showing  me 
myself.  I  found  I  w'as  ambitious;  I  was  not  preaching  for 
Christ;  I  was  preaching  for  ambition;  I  found  everything  in 
my  heart  that  ought  not  to  be  there,  and  I  was  a  miserable 
man.  But  after  four  months  the  anointing  came.  It  came 
upon  me  as  I  was  walking  in  the  streets  of  New  York.  Many 
a  time  I  have  thought  of  it  since  I  have  been  here.  At  last 
I  had  returned  to  God  again,  and  I  was  wretched  no  longer. 
I  almost  prayed  in  my  joy,  'O  stay  Thy  hand!'  I  thought  this 
earthen  vessel  would  break.  He  filled  me  so  full  of  the 
S])irit.  If  I  have  not  been  a  different  man  since,  I  do  not  know 
myself.     I  think  1  have  accomplished  more  in  the  last  four 


THE  GREAT  CHICAGO  FIRE.  147 

years  than  in  all  the  rest  of  my  life.  But  O,  it  was  preceded 
by  a  wrestling  and  hard  struggle!  I  think  I  had  never  else 
got  out  of  this  miserable  selfishness.  There  was  a  time  when 
I  wanted  to  see  my  little  vineyard  blessed,  and  I  could  not  get 
out  of  it;  but  I  could  work  for  the  whole  world  now.  I  would 
like  to  go  around  the  world  and  tell  the  perishing  millions  of  a 
Savior's  love." 

The  baptism  of  fire  which  had  swept  over  Chicago  had  also 
passed  over  his  soul.  Everything  for  which  he  had  been  am- 
bitious had  been  completely  destroyed.  It  would  have  been 
passing  strange  if  such  marvelous  success  as  had  attended  his 
four  years  in  the  presidency  of  the  Association,  the  great  re- 
vivals attending  his  labors  everywhere,  had  not  fostered  in 
some  measure  the  pride  of  the  natural  heart.  But  this  fire 
had,  as  it  were,  swept  him  back,  beaten,  to  the  feet  of  Christ. 
He  must  begin  again  at  the  bottom,  literally  humbled  into 
dust  and  ashes.  There  the  Lord  met  him  as  we  have  just 
read  and  under  a  glorious  baptism  of  the  Holy  Spirit  he  had 
returned  to  his  ministry  among  the  poor  and  the  lowly. 

What  a  blessing  his  return  was!  He  came  in  the  fulness  of 
faith;  full  of  hope  and  courage,  though  like  his  people  he  had 
suffered  the  loss  of  all  things.  Paul's  experience  in  part  was 
repeated  in  Mr.  Moody's,  as,  "Poor,  but  making  many  rich; 
having  nothing  yet  possessing  all  things." 

Mr.  Sankey  also  was  much  comforted  at  this  crisis  by  the 
testimony  of  a  little  child,  a  member  of  the  Sunday  school,  who 
lay  dying  in  one  of  the  poor  little  huts  so  hastily  built  for  the 
homeless.  "How  is  it  with  you  to-day?"  he  asked  her.  She 
answered,  her  face  all  radiant  with  a  smile:  "It  is  all  well  with 
me  to-day.  I  wish  you  would  speak  with  my  father  and 
mother."  "But  are  you  a  Christian?"  "Yes."  "When  did 
you  become  one?"  "Do  you  remember  last  Thursday  in  the 
Tabernacle,  when  we  had  that  little  singing-meeting,  and  you 
sang,  'Jesus  loves  even  me?'  "  "Yes."  "It  was  last  Thursday 
I  believed  on  the  Lord  Jesus,  and  now  I  am  going  to  be  with 


148  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

him  to-day!"  The  strength  of  the  testimony  of  that  Httle 
child  was  enough  to  take  Mr.  Sankey  to  labor  in  the  British 
Isles,  as  he  has  himself  testified.  "I  remember,"  he  added, 
when  speaking  of  the  circumstance  in  Scotland,  "the  joy  I  had 
in  looking  upon  that  beautiful  face.  She  went  up  to  heaven, 
and  no  doubt  she  said  she  learned  upon  the  earth  that  Jesus 
loved  her,  from  that  little  hymn.  If  you  want  to  enjoy  a 
blessing,  go  to  the  bedside  of  these  bedridden  and  dying  ones 
and  sing  to  them  of  Jesus,  for  they  cannot  enjoy  these  meet- 
ings as  you  do.  You  will  get  a  great  blessing  to  your  own 
souls." 

Thus  these  true  yoke-fellows  became  more  devoted  than 
ever  to  the  preaching  of  Jesus  Christ  and  Him  crucified.  It 
was  a  wonderful  winter.  A  happier  company  than  that  Sun- 
day school  thus  rising  up  among  the  ashes,  could  not  be  found 
anywhere  on  earth.  All  the  troubles  of  the  week  were  for- 
gotten in  those  delightful  all-day-long  reunions  of  the  Sab- 
bath. Wave  upon  wave  of  revival  swept  over  the  Tabernacle 
meetings.  Having  only  Jesus  how  much  more  precious  He 
had  become.  With  what  exceeding  earnestness  and  tender- 
ness would  Mr.  Moody  point  all  the  struggling,  careworn,  dis- 
couraged men  and  women  to  the  strong,  living  and  sympathet- 
ic Jesus.  Thus  the  winter  passed,  their  common  labors  and 
sufferings  and  privation  binding  them  all  more  closely  to  each 
other  and  to  the  blessed  Savior. 

A  VISIT  TO  ENGLAND 

was  made  by  Mr.  Moody  in  the  spring  of  1872,  for  the  purpose 
of  attending  the  Evangelical  Conference  at  Mildmay  Park, 
London,  Mr.  Sankey  being  left  in  charge  of  the  meetmgs  and 
Sabbath  school  in  the  Tabernacle. 

This  visit,  in  the  Providence  of  God,  was  very  important  as 
opening  the  way  for  the  great  evangelistic  tours  that  were  to 
follow  and  for  the  blessing  which  was  to  come  into  Mr. 
Moody's  own  life.     In  a  brief  stay  in  Engla".d  he  preached 


THE  GREAT  CHICAGO  FIRE.  149 

almost  a  hundred  times,  and  established  a  daily  union  prayer 
meeting  in  London.  He  also  spent  some  time  with  George 
Muller,  the  founder  of  the  famous  orphan  asylum  at  Bristol, 
which  had  been  wholly  maintained  for  many  years  by  a  sub- 
lime, child-like  reliance  upon  the  very  word  of  God.  Here  he 
was  also  brought  into  closest  communion  with  devout  breth- 
ren, who  believed  in  the  near  approach  of  the  second  coming 
of  Christ,  and  came  to  share  most  profoundly  in  their  convic- 
tions. Of  this  new  hght  he  has  testified:  "I  have  felt  like  work- 
ing three  times  as  hard  ever  since  I  came  to  understand  that 
my  Lord  was  coming  back  again.  I  look  on  this  world  as  a 
wrecked  vessel.  God  has  given  me  a  life-boat,  and  said  to  me 
'Moody,  save  all  you  can.'  This  world  is  getting  darker  and 
darker;  its  ruin  is  drawing  nearer  and  nearer;  if  you  have  any 
friends  on  this  wreck  unsaved,  you  had  better  lose  no  time  in 
getting  them  off."  At  that  time  he  met  Henry  Varley,  an 
evangelist,  and  was  impressed  deeply  by  his  remark:  "It  re- 
mains for  the  world  to  see  what  the  Lord  can  do  with  a  man 
wholly  consecrated  to  Christ."  He  also  overheard  one  Chris- 
tian inquire  of  another  concerning  him,  "Is  this  young  man 
all  O  O?"  And  when  asked,  "What  do  you  mean  by  O  O?" 
repHed,  "Is  he  out  and  out  for  Christ?"  "I  tell  you,"  Moody 
confessed  later,  "it  burned  down  into  my  soul.  It  means  a 
good  deal  to  be  O  O  for  Christ." 

The  immediate  result  of  this  trip  to  England  was  an  invita- 
tion to  return  again  the  following  year  for  an  evangelistic  cam- 
paign. Thus  the  providences  of  God  were  combining  to  send 
forth  these  consecrated  men — Moody  and  Sankey — to  a  work, 
the  glorious  results  of  which  the  records  in  the  Lamb's  Book 
of  Life  alone  may  finally  .reveal. 


Moody  and  Sankey  in  England. 

HE  urgent  invitation  which  Mr.  Moody  had  re- 
ceived in  1872  from  Rev.  Mr.  Pennyfather,  rector 
of  the  Mikhiiay  Park  Church  in  London,  and  Mr. 
Cuthbert  Bainbridge,  a  weahhy  Wesleyan  mer- 
chant of  Newcastlc-upon  Tyne,  had  wakened  in 
his  heart  great  expectations.  Under  his  recent  baptism  of 
the  Holy  Spirit,  this  hope  grew  and  strengthened  in  him  and 
he  was  enabled  to  claim  the  blessing  beforehand.  When  a 
friend  asked  him,  "Why  do  you  go  to  England  again  so  soon?" 
His  reply  was:  "To  win  ten  thousand  souls  to  Christ." 

This  answer  might  seem  to  be  the  utterance  of  fanatical  en- 
thusiasm if  not  of  presumption.  But  a  gentleman  from  Man- 
chester, England,  in  the  midst  of  the  wonderful  work  then  in 
progress,  said:  "It  was  an  inspiring  motive  that  impelled  him 
to  the  attempt.  It  was  an  ambition  worthy  of  an  apostle.  It 
no  longer  seems  a  daring  impulse  that  led  him  to  the  consecra- 
tion of  his  earnest  powers  to  such  an  heavenly  purpose." 

Having  come  to  this  decision  he  said  to  Mr.  Sankey:  "You 
have  often  proposed  that  we  should  go  out  evangelizing  to- 
gether; now  go  with  me  to  England." 

Acting  on  the  advice  of  a  friend  whom  he  consulted  and  the 
inner  promptings  of  his  own  soul,  Mr.  Sankey  declined  an  in- 
vitation to  go  with  Philip  Phillips  on  a  tour  to  the  Pacific 
coast  and  decided  to  go  with  Mr.  Moody. 

They  agreed  to  trust  wholly  to  the  Lord  to  direct  an  1  sup- 
port them,  sharing  together  whatever  God  by  His  providence 
should  give  them  for  their  expenses  and  as  a  reward  for  their 
labors.  They  were  to  take  no  salaries.  They  were  to  ask  for 
no  collections;  but  to  rely  entirely  upon  the  Lord  for  daily 
bread  as  for  daily  grace. 

They  were  to  take  their  wives  and  children.     The  day  was 


MOODY  AND  SANKEY  IN  ENGLAND.  151 

fixed,  but  there  was  no  money  to  pay  their  passage.  It  was 
the  last  day,  only  a  few  hours  from  train  time.  A  friend,  his 
generous,  true  friend,  Mr.  Farvvell,  suddenly  bethinks  himself 
that  they  will  want  some  money  after  reaching  England;  goes 
to  say  "Good-bye"  and  places  five  hundred  dollars  in  Mr. 
Moody's  hand. 

One  last  trial,  one  last  deliverance,  and  on  June  the  7th,  1873 
they  sailed  from  New  York  on  an  errand  of  love  that  was  to 
be  blessed  to  twice  ten  thousand  souls — to  the  mightiest  reli- 
gious awakening  that  Great  Britain  had  ever  known. 

A  SINGULAR  TRIAL  OF  FAITH 
awaited  them.  Mr.  Pennyfather  died  while  they  were  on  the 
ocean,  and  Mr.  Bainbridge  soon  after  their  arrival  at  Liver- 
pool. Mr.  Moody  at  once  telegraphed  his  arrival  to  Mr.  Ben- 
nett, secretary  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  of 
York,  from  whom  also  he  had  an  invitation,  saying  that  he 
was  ready  to  begin  his  meetings.  Mr.  Bennett  replied  that  it 
would  take  at  least  a  month  to  prepare  the  way  for  the  revival, 
but  asking  what  date  he  might  be  expected,  Mr.  Moody  tele- 
graphed "I  will  be  in  York  to  night." 

It  was  a  faith  venture,  in  a  city  where  few  had  ever  heard 
his  name,  and  only  Mr.  Bennett  had  ever  seen  his  face.  The 
field  was  by  no  means  promising,  as  it  was  the  seat  of  the 
archbishopric,  of  a  cultured  and  well  endowed  clergy,  amply 
provided  with  churches  that  were  but  poorly  attended.  INIr. 
Moody  said  to  the  doubtful  secretary,  "Every  man  has  to 
make  his  own  way,  and  we  will  begin  Sunday."  With  great 
Jifificulty  two  or  three  churches  or  chapels  were  secured;  but 
at  their  first  prayer  meeting,  held  on  Sunday  morning  in  a 
small  room  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Asosciation,  only 
eight  persons  were  present.     And  this  was  the  beginning  of 

THE  GREAT  AWAKENING. 
The  first  week's  work  considered  as  a  revival  was  a  most 
lamentable  failure.     The  clergy  (Church  of  England),     and 


152  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

the  ministry,  gave  them  scant  courtesy,  yet  the  common  peo- 
ple heard  them  gladly.  The  Bible  Readings  attracted  special 
attention  and  the  manifest  results  were  upward  of  tvrc  hun- 
dred and  fifty  professed  conversions.  The  singing  of  Mr. 
Sankey  was  both  a  surprise  and  a  delight.  Never  had  they 
heard  such  gospel  singing  before.  Crowds  would  gather  in 
the  street  in  front  of  his  lodgings  to  listen  to  it.  An  instance 
is  related  of  a  woman  who  was  convicted  of  sin  while  thus  lis- 
tening. On  asking  and  obtaining  an  interview  with  the  sing- 
er she  was  immediately  led  to  the  acceptance  of  Christ  as  her 
Savior.  Many  such  conversions  have  taken  place,  but  this 
seems  to  have  been  the  first  and  one  of  the  most  striking. 

The  next  door  opened  was  not  a  very  wide  one.  One  soli- 
tary minister,  Mr.  Rees,  of  Sunderland,  an  open-communion 
Baptist,  determined  to  invite  Moody  and  Sankey  to  labor 
with  his  own  congregation  at  Bethesda  chapel.  IMeetings  be- 
gan there  Sunday,  July  27th. 

In  speaking  of  the  coldness  and  opposition  of  the  ministers 
to  him  in  Sunderland  it  was  remarked:  "Mr.  Moody  had  one 
whole  minister,  three-fourths  of  one  other,  and  nothing,  or 
next  to  nothing  of  all  the  rest,  to  help  him  in  his  meetings." 

From  the  first  however,  large  congregations  gathered  out 
of  curiosity  and  to  hear  Mr.  Sankey  sing.  But  the  work 
dragged  heavily.  No  one  in  all  the  town,  except  Mr.  Rees, 
gave  them  the  least  of^cial  notice.  It  was  here  that  the  fa- 
mous word  was  uttered:  "We  can  never  go  on  in  this  way.  It 
is  easier  fighting  the  devil  than  fighting  the  ministers." 

But  these  men  stuck  bravely  to  their  post  for  a  month, 
though  the  harvest  was  comparatively  scant.  A  good  work, 
however,  was  done  in  the  preaching  of  the  gospel,  and  later 
when  a  delegation  of  young  men  came  down  from  Edinburgh, 
led  by 

HENRY  DRUMMOND, 
the  whole  city  was  moved  as  never  before  in  all  its  history. 
Before  those  meetings  closed  more  than  a  thousand  persons 


MOODY  AND  SANKEY  IN  ENGLAND.  153 

in  Sunderland  alone,  gave  in  their  names  as  converts.  In  his 
weekly  letter  home,  Driimmond  writes: 

"Requests  are  pouring  in  on  us  from  all  quarters,  and  the 
work  is  just  as  deep  as  can  be.  We  have  three  meetings  each 
night,  one  exclusively  for  young  men.  Generally  there  are 
about  a  hundred  inquirers  in  all  every  night,  and  as  most  of 
them  come  to  the  light  before  leaving,  you  may  imagine  the 
wonderful  nature  of  the  work  going  on  around  us." 

Meetings  of  three  or  four  thousand,  daily  addresses  to 
hundreds  of  young  men,  crowds  of  anxious  inquirers,  urgent 
invitations  from  all  quarters,  the  success  of  the  work  obvious- 
ly dependent  upon  his  presence,  ministers  and  leading  laymen 
in  many  towns  looking  to  him  as  their  chief — conceive  of  all 
this  falling  to  a  man,  not  quite  twenty-three!  His  biographer 
writes:  "The  Sunderland  Mission  made  Drummond  a  man." 

But  under  Mr.  Moody's  preaching  it  was 

AT  NEWCASTLE 

that  the  light  was  to  be  kindled  which  was  to  shine  forth  in  all 
its  glory  over  all  Great  Britain,  and  reveal  the  power  of  God 
in  the  labors  of  these  humble  evangelists. 

Rev.  David  Lowe,  a  pastor  in  that  city,  went  down  to  Sun- 
derland to  visit  Mr.  Moody's  meetings.  He  arrived  at  the 
place  just  as  a  large  number  of  inquirers  were  being  sent  into 
a  separate  room  for  instruction,  and  was  surprised  by  the 
bluff  greeting  of  Mr.  Moody: 

"Here,  Brother  Lowe,  go  in  and  talk  to  all  these  inquirers. 
There  are  so  many  you  will  have  to  make  them  into  a  little 
congregation  and  talk  to  them  all  together." 

This  led  to  an  urgent  call  for  Mr.  Moody  to  go  to  Newcas- 
tle, which  was  accepted  at  once  as  from  the  Lord.  And  they 
went,  determined  by  God's  grace  there  to  remain  and  "live 
down  the  prejudices  of  the  ministers  and  the  good  people  who 
do  not  understand  us." 

After  preaching  in  various  chapels  for  a  week,  Mr.  Moody 


154  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

settled  down  at  Rye  Hill  Baptist  Chapel,  which  would  ac- 
commodate above  sixteen  hundred  people.  Soon  this  was 
crowded  and  Music  Hall,  with  its  fine  auditorium,  was  also 
thrown  open  for  the  noon  day  prayer  meetings,  and  evening 
services.  In  answer  to  the  united  prayers  of  the  thousands 
of  people  now  attending,  the  reviving  power  of  God's  love  be- 
gan to  be  felt  to  a  most  marvelous  degree. 

AN  ALL  DAY  MEETING 
held  September  loth,  was  one  of  great  blessing.  The  spa- 
cious chapel,  with  its  galleries,  was  filled  with  those  who  had 
left  business,  home-cares  and  work,  pleasure  and  idleness,  to 
come  and  worship  God  and  hear  His  word.  Never  was  the 
faith  of  God's  people  more  abundantly  satisfied.  They  asked 
and  it  was  given,  they  sought  and  found,  they  knocked  and 
the  door  was  opened  unto  them.  It  was  at  Newcastle  that 
God  set  up  His  tabernacle  that  was  to  accompany  them  in  all 
their  journeys.  By  the  pillar  of  fire  and  under  mercy  clouds 
these  men  were  henceforth  to  move  as  led  by  the  very  pres- 
ence of  the  Holy  Spirit.  The  closing  service  came,  when 
strong  men  bowed  and  wept  out  their  manly  sorrow  like  chil- 
dren. Mr.  Moody  would  not  say  "Good-bye."  No!  but 
"Good-night,"  rather.  The  Jubilee  Singers  who  were  pres 
ent,  sang  "Shall  we  meet  beyond  the  River?"  Then  came  the 
benediction.  "The  meetings  were  over,  the  great  occasion 
past,  the  memory  thereof  to  die  no  more." 

It  were  as  difficult  to  reckon  up  the  results  of  that  month 
of  revival  in  Newcastle  as  of  the  spring  rains  which  prepare 
the  way  for  the  flowers  of  May,  and  the  harvests  of  autumn. 
The  whole  of  the  north  of  England  was  reached  and  aroused. 
Scores  of  Christian  workers,  quickened  and  instructed,  went 
out  into  tile  neighboring  districts,  to  toll  the  story  of  the  cross. 
Hundreds  of  converts  were  received  into  the  churches,  and 
the  tidings  of  the  great  outpouring  of  the  Holy  Spirit  upon 
Newcastle  and  vicinity  were  sent  by  letters  and  telegrams  all 
over  Great  Britain. 


MOODY  AND  SANKEY  IN  ENGLAND.  I55 

Rev.  John  Kclman,  of  Free  St.  John's,  Leith,  visited  both 
Sunderland  and  Newcastle  to  learn  for  himself  if  the  wonder- 
ful reports  of  their  meetings  were  true.  He  had  returned 
overflowing  with  joy,  with  Mr.  Moody's  promise  to  visit 
Edinburgh,  and  with  holy  expectations  for  Scotland.  A  com- 
mittee was  formed,  of  which  Rev.  J.  H.  Wilson,  of  the  Barclay 
Church,  Edinburgh,  was  chairman,  and  Rev.  John  Kelman 
secretary,  to  prepare  for  the  coming  of  the  evangelists. 

Leaving  Mr.  Moody's  work  in  Scotland  for  the  following 
chapter,  and  the  Impress  of  the  Great  Revival  upon  the  Re- 
ligious Life  of  Scotland  for  a  later  chapter  by  Rev.  Dr.  Mc- 
Murtrie,  Convener  of  the  Foreign  Missions'  Committee  of 
the  Church  of  Scotland,  we  pass  on  to  his  great  work  in 
MANCHESTER,  EN'GLAND. 

Their  meetings  there  began  on  a  dark  Sunday,  November 
29th,  1874,  in  a  drenching  rain,  yet  at  eight  in  the  morning 
two  thousand  workers  gathered  for  the  opening  address  by 
Mr.  Moody.  It  was  an  inspiring  talk  on  "Courage,  Perse- 
verance, and  Love" — the  three  requisites  of  all  workers  for 
God. 

For  months  previously  strong  supplications  had  been  go- 
ing up  to  the  throne  for  a  great  blessing.  The  most  delight- 
ful expressions  of  unity  of  faith  and  feeling  was  a  union  com- 
munion service  held  in  two  chapels,  when  over  two  thousand 
Christians  from  many  churches  sat  down  together  in  fellow- 
ship and  love,  and  prayed  to  the  great  Head  of  the  Church 
for  grace  and  power.  Already  an  awakening  and  reviving 
breath  from  heaven  was  passing  over  the  face  of  the  church. 
The  unfolding  of  the  revival  in  Manchester  was  more  beauti- 
ful and  refreshing  to  the  spirit  than  the  opening  of  spring  after 
a  long,  dreary  winter.  The  rapid  clothing  of  the  fields  with 
spiritual  verdure ;  the  sweet  fragrance  wafted  on  every  breeze 
from  the  gardens  of  the  Lord;  the  glowing  warmth  of  Chris- 
tian love  and  zeal  after  a  protracted  season  of  coldness;  the 
quickening  of  the  graces  of  the  soul  into  new  life,  and  the 


156  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

swelling  buds  of  promise  appearing  everywhere  from  the  very 
beginning,  filled  all  hearts  with  joy  and  the  assurance  of  most 
precious  harvestings. 

The  afternoon  meetings  were  still  more  remarkable.  The 
incessant  rain  had  not  abated,  yet  both  Oxford  Hall  and  Free 
Trade  Hall  were  filled  to  overflowing  and  Moody  and  Sankey 
conducted  services  in  each  one.  A  mighty  interest  was  gath- 
ering which  broke  forth  with  wonderful  power  on  Monday 
evening  when  Free  Trade  Hall  was  crowded  to  its  utmost 
capacity.  The  presence  of  the  Spirit  of  God  was  felt  by  all. 
The  address  was  growing  in  intense  earnestness,  the  speaker 
seemed  to  come  into  direct  contact  with  the  souls  of  the  peo- 
ple, hearts  melted  under  the  fervor  of  his  appeals.  When  he 
requested  any  who  wished  to  be  prayed  for  to  stand  up,  busi- 
ness men  began  to  rise.  Before  many  minutes  people  were 
standing  all  over  the  house.  Then  followed  the  inquiry  meet- 
ing. Mr.  Moody  said  afterwards  that  it  was  the  best  meet- 
ing he  had  ever  known  on  the  second  evening  of  a  series. 

Two  or  three  thousand  people  crowded  into  the  noon-day 
prayer  meetings;  and  these  became  the  very  soul  and  center  of 
the  movement. 

In  a  single  week  Manchester  was  all  on  fire.  The  most 
difificult  of  all  English  cities  to  be  moved  by  anything  except 
politics,  was  now  fairly  ablaze.  On  Sunday,  December  6th, 
the  Free  Trade  Hall  presented  a  spectacle  never  to  be  for- 
gotten. 

"The  building  was  densely  crowded.  Not  an  inch  of  stand- 
ing room  was  unoccujMcd.  Long  before  the  appointed  hour 
hundreds  found  it  impossible  to  gain  admission.  And  Mr. 
Moody — in  what  terms  shall  I  describe  his  address?  Theo- 
logical critics  might  have  laid  there  was  nothing  in  it,  but  only 
eternity  will  reveal  hov.  much  came  out  of  it.  I  should  not 
be  surprised  if  hundreds  of  conversions  resulted  from  that 
single  mighty  appeal.  Taking  for  his  text  the  first  question 
addressed  to  sinful  man,  'Where  art  thou?'  he  brought  it 


MOODY  AND  SANKEY  IN  ENGLAND.  157 

home  to  the  bosom  of  every  hearer  with  a  power  and  pathos 
that  were  simply  irresistible.  Having  referred  to  the  case  of 
a  young-  man  who  had  cried  out  in  the  inquiry  room,  'Oh, 
mother,  I  am  coming,'  the  young  man  himself  sprang  to  his 
feet,  and  exclaimed  in  tones  of  impassioned  earnestness, 

THAT  WAS  ME.' 

"The  effect  was  electrical.  Not  an  eye  but  was  sufifused  with 
tears.  The  whole  vast  assembly  was  impressed  with  a  pro- 
found sense  of  the  presence  and  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost." 

This  religious  awakening  made  most  wonderful  progress 
into  the  third  week.  The  meetings  were  more  and  more 
thronged,  and  many  souls  were  joyously  converted.  At  one 
of  the  meetings  the  case  was  mentioned  of  an  old  gentleman 
seventy  years  of  age  who  had  been  seeking  Christ  for  thirteen 
years.  He  had  come  a  far  journey  in  order  to  be  present  at 
the  meetings.  Still  he  could  not  find  peace.  Last  Friday  eve- 
ning as  Mr.  Sankey  was  singing  "The  Ninety  and  Nine,"  the 
light  burst  in  upon  his  soul:  'That's  me!'  he  cried,  'Jesus  has 
been  seeking  me  all  these  years  wandering  upon  the  moun- 
tains.' He  accepted  salvation  then  and  there  and  found  joy 
and  peace  in  believing. 

As  the  singing  of  "Jesus  of  Nazareth  Passeth  By,"  and  "The 
Ninety  and  Nine"  were  the  direct  means  leading  to  more  con- 
versions than  any  other  hymns  which  Mr.  Sankey  sung,  it 
were  well  to  preserve  the  truth  regarding  the  origin  of  this 
most  pathetic  and  persuasive  hymn  and  tune. 

NINETY  AND  NINE. 
Music  to  the  words  of  the  famous  old  gospel  hymn,  "There 
Were  Ninety  and  Nine,"  forever  identified  with  the  work  of 
Moody  and  Sankey,  was  composed  by  Mr.  Sankey  under  the 
inspiration  of  Mr.  Moody's  early  preaching.  The  two  were 
traveling  in  Scotland  during  their  first  trip  to  Great  Britain. 
On  the  train  one  day  the  singer  cut  from  a  newspaper  the 
familiar  lines  of  Miss  E.  C.  Clephane: 


158  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

There  were  ninety  and  nine  that  safely  lay 

In  the  shelter  of  the  fold, 
But  one  was  out  on  the  hills  away, 
Far  from  the  gates  of  gold. 

He  handed  the  clipping  to  his  companion,  who  scanned  the 
verse  and  returned  it  without  comment.  The  same  day  Mr. 
Moody,  in  a  public  meeting,  made  one  of  the  most  earnest 
appeals  of  his  ministry.  His  discourse  suggested  the  tender 
care  of  the  shepherd,  and  the  people  were  profoundly  im- 
pressed. 

Suddenly  the  emotional  tension  of  the  audience  was  arrested 
by  the  speaker  turning  to  his  associate  at  the  organ.  "Sankey, 
sing  something,"  he  said.  Taken  by  surprise,  Mr.  Sankcy 
fumbled  through  his  old  hymn  book,  but  failed  to  find  eithcr 
words  or  music  for  the  occasion.  The  newspaper  clipping 
was  in  his  mind.  On  the  impulse  he  placed  it  before  him  on 
the  organ  and  began  to  sing.  The  marvelous  power  of  the 
singer  went  direct  to  the  hearts  of  the  audience.  He  sang  as 
he  never  had  before.  His  voice  was  heard  around  the  world. 
The  hynm  as  sung  by  Mr.  Sankey  to-day  is  practically  tlie 
same.  "Sankey,"  said  Mr.  Moody,  regretfully,  years  after- 
ward, "there  will  never  be  another  'Ninety  and  Nine.'  " 

An  incident  in  connection  with  the  hymn  so  closely  associat- 
ed with  the  two  evangelists  is  treasured  among  the  fondest 
recollections  of  each.  Upon  returning  from  their  first  trip  to 
England  a  great  meeting  of  welcome  was  held  under  the  trees 
in  front  of  the  old  Northfield  Church.  At  Mr.  Moody's  re- 
quest Mr.  Sankey  sang  the  "Ninety  and  Nine." 

Across  the  river,  nearly  a  mile  distant,  on  the  porch  of  what 
was  known  as  the  "white  house,"  sat  Farmer  Caldwell,  the 
avowed  atheist,  miserable  in  his  disbelief.  He  was  angry  be- 
cause his  wife  and  children  had  gone  to  the  Moody  and  Sankey 
meeting,  and  his  meditations  were  bitter.  The  powerful  voice 
of  Mr.  Sankey  rolled  in  upon  him  over  the  valley  and  echoed 
faintly  from  the  hills.     Before  the  singing  died  away,  in  the 


MOODY  AND  SANKEY  IN  ENGLAND.  159 

afternoon  silence  of  the  mountain  side,  Mr.  Caldwell  was  on 
his  knees. 

Nine  years  afterward  "old  man''  Caldwell  lay  dying  in  Bon- 
ar  Hall,  one  of  the  seminary  buildings.  Down  the  old  North- 
field  street  another  crowd  was  assembled.  Mr.  Sankey, 
standing  upon  the  corner  stone  of  the  new  church  edifice  of 
the  town,  was  again  singing  the  famous  old  hymn.  Suddenly 
the  dying  man  roused  himself. 

"I  hear  singing,"  he  said  to  his  wife.  "Open  the  south  win- 
dow." Thinking  it  was  only  a  fancy  the  wife  tried  to  divert 
him,  but  when  he  insisted  that  he  heard  music  the  window  was 
opened  and  he  listened  again  to  the  song  that  had  first  touched 
his  heart. 

The  closing  week  in  Manchester  was  the  most  joyful  of  all. 
The  tide  of  blessing  which  had  been  steadily  rising  was  then 
reaching  its  flood.  The  earnestness  of  the  preacher  seemed 
to  be  met  by  the  eagerness  of  the  people,  and  the  unconverted 
were  urged  to  take  refuge  in  Christ  with  a  vehemence  which 
brought  hundreds  into  the  kingdom.  At  the  noon  prayer 
meeting  December  31st,  Mr.  Moody  read  and  commented  on 
the  first  part  of  the  138th  Psalm.  In  his  closing  remarks  he 
said  he  had  to  bless  God  for  what  he  had  done  for  him.  It 
had  been  the  best  year  othis  life.  He  had  been  more  used  of 
God" than  in  all  the  seventeen  preceding  years.  He  did  not 
know  of  one  sermon  he  had  delivered  that  had  not  been 
blessed  to  the  conviction  or  conversion  of  some  soul.  And 
thus  his  meetings  in  Manchester  closed. 

MEETINGS  IN  SHEFFIELD. 

Messrs.  Moody  and  Sankey  arrived  in  Sheffield  Thursday 
afternoon,  December  31st,  1874.  When  the  clock  should 
strike  the  midnight  hour  what  a  wonderful  year  would  be  fin- 
ished! What  a  record  had  its  blessed  days  borne  aloft  of 
souls  saved  and  a  Redeemer  glorified.  What  mighty  influ- 
ences had  been  started  on  their  never  dying  mission.     How 


i6o  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

precious  the  far-waving  harvests.  The  year  opened  for  them 
amid  the  hushed  and  holy  throng  gathered  in  Edinburgh  to 
watch  the  old  year  out  and  the  new  year  in.  It  was  to  close  for 
them  while  on  bended  knees  they  prayed  for  Shef^eld. 

THE  WATCH-NIGHT  SERVICE 

was  to  be  held  in  Albert  Hall,  before  which  an  immense 
throng  had  been  standing  an  hour  before  the  doors  were 
opened.  A  large  number  of  ministers  came  on  the  platform 
about  eleven  o'clock.  Mr.  Sankey  sang  "Jesus  of  Nazareth 
Passeth  by,"  as  the  close  of  the  year  drew  nigh.  Never  before 
had  such  an  effect  been  produced  by  his  singing.  Never  had 
he  been  heard  to  sing  with  greater  pathos  the  closing  lines  of 
the  last  stanza, 

"Too  late!  too  late!  will  be  the  cry, 
Jesus  of  Nazareth  has  passed  by." 

"^Mr.  Moody  spoke  from  Luke  xix:io,  'For  the  Son  of 
Man  is  come  to  seek  and  to  save  that  which  was  lost.'  As 
illustrating  this  verse  he  graphically  narrated  the  two  stories 
immediately  preceding  the  text — that  of  the  opening  of  the 
eyes  of  blind  Bartimeus  and  the  conversion  of  Zac- 
cheus.  The  stories  were  related  in  that  way  peculiarly 
Mr.  Moody's  own,  making  his  listeners  part  and  parcel  of  the 
scene,  as  if  the  whole  thing  were  enacted  just  in  the  Targate, 
and  Jesus  were  passing  the  hall  doors.  He  connected  the  two 
stories  by  throwing  out  the  thought  that  as  Bartimeus  was  on 
his  way  home  to  tell  his  wife,  Zaccheus  met  him.  'Why,  isn't 
that  the  poor  bUnd  beggar?  It's  like  him;  but  it  can't  be, 
for  his  eyes  are  open.' 

"  'Yes,  it  is  I.' 

"  'What  has  made  your  eyes  open?' 

"  'Jesus  of  Nazareth  did  it.' 

"  'Where  is  He?     I  must  see  Him.' 

"  'He's  just  on  the  road  to  Jericho.' 

"Away  Zaccheus  runs;  and  because  he  is  a  little  man,  he 


MOODY  AND  SANKEY  IN  ENGLAND.  i6i 

gets  up  a  tree  to  see  well.  Jesus  stops,  looks  up,  calls  him, 
'Zaccheus,  come  down.'"  This  was  one  instance  of  sudden 
conversion.  Some  don't  believe  in  sudden  conversion;  but 
here  Zaccheus  was  not  converted  when  he  went  up  the  tree, 
yet  he  came  down  a  converted  man.  We  are  told  he  re- 
ceived Jesus  gladly.  From  these  incidents,  he  proved  how 
willing,  how  eager,  Christ  is  to  save  all.  What  have  we  to  do? 
Nothing!  blessed  be  God.  If  we  had  we  would  never  do  it. 
Only  accept.  What  had  Zaccheus  to  do?  Only  come  down, 
only  obey. 

"He  concluded  by  drawing  the  attention  of  the  audience  to 
the  fact  that  the  old  year  was  fast  dying — only  a  few  minutes 
— and  what  if  the  new  year  should  come  and  find  us  where  we 
were — lost!  Oh,  let  each  of  us  take  it;  the  of¥er  is  here;  will 
you  have  it?  Salvation — ay,  even  before  this  year  is  closed 
you  may  be  saved.  As  there  are  only  a  few  minutes  of  this 
year  remaining,  let  us  finish  the  old  and  begin  the  new  on  our 
knees.  The  whole  audience  then  sunk  on  their  knees,  and 
the  new  year  found  them  bent  in  silent  prayer.  Mr.  Moody 
asked  those  who  were  unsaved  to  stand  up,  that  they  might 
be  prayed  for.  A  few  stood  up  and  Christians  were  asked  to 
pray  for  them.  While  the  audience  thus  remained  kneeling, 
the  most  intense  stillness  prevailed,  broken  only  by  an  occas- 
ional sob. 

"As  the  bells  began  to  ring  in  the  New  Year,  prayer  was  of- 
fered for  the  outpouring  of  the  Holy  Ghost  on  Sheffield.  Mr. 
Moody  then  offered  the  closing  prayer  and  with  the  doxology 
the  meeting  separated." 

The  meetings  in  Albert  Hall  were  marked  by  the  usual 
scenes  now  everywhere  attending  the  services  of  these  evan- 
gelists. Crowded  meetings,  thrice  repeated  every  day  at- 
tended b}^  all  classes  of  persons  were  accompanied  by  the  us- 
ual power  from  on  high. 

The  only  peculiar  feature  here  was  an  out-door  service. 
The  hall  being  entirely  to  small  to  accommodate  the  throngs 
II 


i62  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

Mr.  Moody  went  into  the  parish  church  yard  and  there 
preached  to  the  largest  audience  he  had  ever  addressed  in 
England. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  second  week's  labor  Mr.  Moody  tel- 
egraphed to  Drummond  (who  was  now  regularly  following 
up  Moody's  work,  but  with  special  reference  to  young  men), 
saying:  "Come  to  Sheffield  at  three  to-day.  I  have  a  great 
men's  meeting  for  you  to-night."  In  writing  of  the  work 
Drummond  says:  "My  audience  last  night  would  number 
about  three  thousand,  and  to  night  I  have  another  just  the 
same.  I  think  the  work  here  is  going  to  be  splendid.  All 
classes  are  moved  from  the  mayor  to  the  beggar." 

MEETINGS  IN  BIRMINGHAM. 

This  city  of  four  hundred  thousand  population  had  been  far 
more  noted  for  her  political  activity  than  for  great  religious 
vitality.  For  years  she  had  been  a  political  power  in  the 
land — Hon.  John  Bright  sitting  in  the  House  of  Commons 
as  one  of  her  representatives.  Yet  the  city  also  boasted  some 
very  strong  ministers.  Dr.  R.  W.  Dale,  then  living,  being  one 
of  the  finest  preachers  and  ablest  writers  in  connection  with 
the  Congregational  body.  In  this  city  meetings  were  begun 
Sunday  morning,  January  17th,  under  most  favorable  aus- 
pices. The  meetings  were  to  be  held  in  Bingley  Hall,  one  of 
the  most  spacious  buildings  in  the  country.  When  John 
Bright  addressed  his  constituents  twenty  thousand  people 
could  crowd  into  the  hall  which  was  not  then  seated — but  for 
these  services  about  fifteen  thousand  sittings  had  been  pro- 
vided. Two  services  had  been  held  in  the  Town  Hall — ca- 
pacity nearly  five  thousand — on  Sabbath  morning  and  after- 
noon, but  in  the  evening  Bingley  Hall  was  thrown  open  to  all 
and  was  crowded  throughout  an  hour  before  the  time  fixed, 
and  the  doors  had  to  be  closed  against  two  or  three  times  as 
many  thousands  as  were  within. 

It  was  stated  that  never  before  in  the  history  of  Birmingham 


MOODY  AND  SANKEY  IN  ENGLAND.  163 

had  such  great  crowds  been  drawn  together  as  had  thronged 
their  largest  chapels  and  halls  to  hear  the  gospel.  At  least 
160,000  persons  had  attended  the  services  of  the  first  ten  days. 

Mr.  Moody  said  in  the  closing  services,  "I  have  never  en- 
joyed preaching  the  gospel  more  than  since  I  came  to  Bir- 
mingham. We  have  reached  so  many  people.  I  think,  if  we 
could,  we  would  take  up  Bingley  Hall  and  carry  it  around  the 
world  with  us."  Although  mere  figures  can  never  give  any 
adequate  idea  of  the  good  accomplished  in  such  meetings,  it 
is  interesting  to  know  that  over  two  thousand  persons  giving 
names  and  addresses  applied  for  tickets  to  the  converts'  meet- 
ing; and  of  these  fourteen  hundred  professed  to  have  been 
brought  to  Christ  during  those  two  brief  weeks — the  six  hun- 
dred were  still  anxiously  inquiring  the  way  of  life." 

The  following  touching  incident  was  related  by  Mr.  Moody 
as  showing 

THE  POWER  OF  PRAYER. 

"A  little  boy  was  dying,  and  he  said  to  his  minister  that 
he  would  like  to  do  something  for  Jesus  before  he  died  to 
show  his  gratitude  for  what  He  had  done  for  him.  The  min- 
ister said  he  could  work  for  Jesus  if  he  put  down  on  paper  the 
names  of  those  he  wished  brought  to  Christ,  and  prayed  for 
the  conversion  of  each. 

"The  minister  went  away,  and  forgot  the  matter;  not  so  the 
boy.  Shortly  there  arose  a  revival  of  religion  in  that  dis- 
trict, and  special  meetings  were  held.  The  father  of  the  boy, 
a  godly  man,  took  part  in  them,  and  every  night  when  he  re- 
turned home  his  son  inquired  with  an  intense  interest,  which 
surprised  him,  about  this  one  and  that  one,  if  he  had  been  im- 
pressed or  she  had  come  to  Christ,  and  when  the  answer  was 
'No,'  he  just  turned  to  the  wall  and  prayed.  The  little  boy 
died,  and  under  his  pillow  was  found  a  paper  containing  a  Hst 
of  fifty-six  names  for  whom  he  prayed,  all  of  whom  had  been 
brought  to  Christ.  Let  us  labor  fervently  in  prayer,  and  God 
will  bless." 


i64  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

MEETINGS  IN  LIVERPOOL. 

On  Sunday  morning,  February  7th,  Mr.  Moody  began  his 
services  in  the  great  commercial  city  of  Liverpool.  They  were 
held  in  Victoria  Hall,  a  building  specially  erected  in  thirty- 
nine  working  days  at  a  cost  of  $20,000  for  his  use.  It  could 
seat  eight  thousand  persons  exclusive  of  the  platform,  and 
one  or  two  thousand  could  find  standing  room.  At  the  first 
service,  which  was  always  for  Christian  workers,  five  or  six 
thousand  persons  were  present  at  the  early  hour  of  eight 
o'clock.  The  usual  series  of  meetings  followed,  with  ever  in- 
creasing power  and  blessing.  The  tide  of  revival  influence 
rose  rapidly  and  waves  of  blessing  flowed  through  every  part 
of  the  great  city.  The  average  daily  attendance  at  the  three 
main  services  was  upward  of  twenty  thousand  while  thous- 
ands more  were  unable  to  gain  admission. 

At  one  of  the  noon-day  meetings  more  than  six  thousand 
persons  were  present.  Several  hundred  requests  for  prayer 
were  presented,  Mr.  Moody  saying,  "Jesus  knows  them, 
every  one." 

Great  interest  was  aroused  by  the  account  given  by  a  gen- 
tleman from  Dublin,  where  the  meetings  were  still  being  car- 
ried on  with  great  power — over  two  thousand  Roman  Cath- 
olics being  in  attendance  there: 

"A  Roman  Catholic  lady  while  reading  one  of  the  Moody 
and  Sankey  hymns  in  a  railway  carriage  was  surprised  by 
some  one  speaking  to  her,  she  having  though't  herself  alone. 
The  person  said,  T  see  what  you  are  about.'  To  her  greater 
alarm  she  saw  it  was  her  father-confessor;  but  he  said  to  her, 
'Don't  be  startled;  I  have  been  to  those  meetings  in  Dublin 
myself,  and  I  have  reason  to  be  thankful  and  bless  God  for 
them.'  Taking  the  book  out  of  her  hand,  he  opened  it  at  the 
hymn,  'Jesus  the  Water  of  Life  has  Given.'  and  said  it  was 
when  that  hymn  was  sung  in  the  Exhibition  Building  that 
God  took  away  the  burden  of  his  sins;  adding,  'Now  I  am  go- 
ing over  to  England  to  attend  the  services  of  those  two  good 


MOODY  AND  SANKEY  IN  ENGLAND.  165 

men,  and  I  shall  never  return  again  as  a  Romish  priest  to  Ire- 
land; God  has  burst  my  bonds.'  " 

What  the  prophet  only  saw  in  vision  became  a  glorious 
fact  in  Liverpool.  The  waters  of  grace  which  at  first  only 
reached  to  the  ankles,  and  then  to  the  knees,  soon  rose  above 
the  loins  and  became  a  mighty  river  that  men  could  swim  in. 
Thousands  felt  as  if  the  whole  city  and  district  about  it  were 
in  the  mighty  and  loving  hands  of  God. 

While  no  figures  are  given,  the  inquirers  and  converts  must 
have  numbered  thousands,  and  that  month  in  Liverpool  was 
considered  as  one  of  the  most  blessed  harvest  times  granted 
during  the  two  years  they  spent  in  Great  Britain.  On  their 
last  Sabbath  the  great  Victoria  Hall  was  four  times  crowded 
to  its  utmost  capacity  and  with  the  meetings  held  in  two  other 
large  halls  the  attendance  could  not  have  been  less  than  fifty 
thousand.  Such  was  Liverpool  in  February  and  March,  1875, 
while  in  June,  1873,  to  the  call  of  the  evangelists  not  a  single 
soul  had  responded. 

THE  LONDON  REVIVAL. 

In  a  second  class  compartment  of  a  railway  carriage,  two 
men,  having  nothing  to  distinguish  them  from  ordinary  pas- 
sengers, are  on  their  way  up  to  London  from  Liverpool.  Only 
a  year  and  a  half  agone  they  were  entering  the  city  of 
York  unheralded  and  almost  absolutely  unknown,  with  only 
a  single  man  to  greet  them,  and  a  bare  half  dozen  to  meet  with 
them  on  Sunday  morning  to  pray  for  God's  blessing  on  Eng 
land.  They  prayed  in  an  agony  of  faith.  Months  roll  by, 
and  now  that  they  are  nearing  the  metropolis  of  the  modern 
world,  like  St.  Paul  nearing  Rome,  they  thanked  God  and 
took  courage. 

Tens  of  thousands,  hundreds  of  thousands  are  waiting  for 
them.  London  alone  is  to  give  them  another  ten  thousand  of 
precious  souls  to  win  whom  for  Christ  they  had  ventured  out 
alone  and  trusting  only  in  God  for  the  fulfillment  of  His  prom- 


i66  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

ises.  Twelve  hundred  ministers  had  met  with  Mr.  Moody 
some  weeks  before  and  the  time  since  elapsing  had  been  spent 
in  most  active  work  and  most  earnest  prayer  for  God's  bless- 
ing to  fall  with  wondrous  power  upon  the  four  millions  of  peo- 
ple dwelling  in  that  vast  and  mighty  city. 

One  month  is  to  be  spent  in  each  of  the  four  great  districts 
into  which  London  has  been  divided.  The  largest  halls  to  be 
had  have  been  secured,  others  were  being  erected  and  fifty 
thousand  dollars  had  been  poured  into  the  treasury  towards 
the  expenses.  The  meetings  are  to  begin  in  Agricultural 
Hall,  in  Islington,  North  District,  in  the  midst  of  a  popula- 
tion numbering  upwards  of  a  million. 

Only  once  had  Mr.  Spurgeon  ventured  to  preach  in  that 
great  structure  to  an  audience  of  twenty-two  thousand  peo- 
ple. Temporary  partitions  were  to  be  erected  so  that  all 
could  hear,  and  on  Tuesday  evening  the  first  service  was  to 
be  held.  At  six  o'clock  the  crowds  began  to  gather,  and  by 
half-past  seven  eighteen  or  twenty  thousand  persons  had 
thronged  the  vast  building. 

Mr.  Moody,  after  reading  I  Corinthians,  1:17-31,  spoke  in 
part  as  follows: 

"He  said  that  he  had  received  letters  from  a  great  many 
Christians  in  London,  who  were  praying  that  God  might  re- 
vive His  w^ork  here.  His  great  fear  in  coming  to  this  city  was 
that  many  might  be  leaning  upon  man,  and  upon  the  arm  of 
flesh,  and  might  take  their  eyes  off.  from  the  living  God.  If  a 
work  was  to  be  done  in  London,  however,  God  must  do  it.  It 
was  not  any  new  gospel  that  London  wanted,  nor  any  new 
power.  It  was  the  same  old,  old  story  that  the  ministers  of 
the  churches  had  been  telling  continually.  God's  ways  were 
not  bur  ways,  nor  His  thoughts  our  thoughts,  and  we  must  not 
mark  out  channels  for  the  Holy  Ghost  to  work  in  when  He 
comes. 

"When  God  was  going  to  destroy  the  workl,  and  wanted  an 
ark  built,  He  did  not  tell  a  nation  to  do  it,  neither  did  He  call 


MOODY  AND  SANKEY  IN  ENGLAND.  167 

upon  hundreds  of  men  to  do  it,but  one  man,  and  he  a  man  who 
was  contemptible  in  the  sight  of  the  world;  for  the  world 
laughed  at  him  and  mocked  him.  What  was  highly  esteemed 
by  man  was  an  abomination  to  God  and  what  was  highly  es- 
teemed by  God  was  an  abomination  to  man.  When  He  wanted 
to  bring  three  millions  of  people  out  of  Egypt,  His  way  of  do- 
ing it  was  quite  different  from  any  that  man  would  have  adopt- 
ed. He  did  not  send  an  army  with  chariots,  but  a  man  who 
had  been  forty  years  on  the  back  side  of  the  desert,  and  whose 
name  had  been  forgotten  among  the  children  of  Israel,  a  man 
slow  of  speech,  a  stuttering  man. 

"There  was  not  a  man  whose  name  shone  out  on  the  page  of 
divine  history  but  was  considered  a  fool  in  his  day.  He  had 
no  doubt  that  Enoch  was  considered  a  great  fool  in  the  sight 
of  the  world,  but  he  walked  with  God,  and  God  thought  so 
much  of  him  that  He  said  'Come  up  higher,'  for  He  liked  his 
company.  Noah  was  the  laughing  stock  of  his  day.  Men 
made  great  sport  of  him;  but  he  was  willing  to  be  a  fool  for 
God's  sake,  and  God  used  him  and  blessed  him.  And  if  we 
want  to  be  of  use  to  God,  we  must  be  willing  to  be  fools  in  the 
sight  of  the  world.  Look  at  Joshua  going  round  the  walls  of 
Jericho.  It  was  a  most  absurd  sight.  How  the  London  press 
would  have  come  down  upon  a  scene  like  that!  Fancy  the 
Archbishop  of  Canterbury  and  other  great  dignitaries  going 
round  London  blowing  rams'  horns!  Everybody  would  be 
disgusted  and  say  they  should  have  golden  trumpets  at  least. 
But  that  was  not  God's  way.  Look  at  Samson.  When  the 
Spirit  was  on  him,  how  he  worked.  With  a  jaw-bone  of  an 
ass  he  slew  a  thousand  men.  People  nowadays  were  not  will- 
ing to  work  with  the  jaw  bone  of  an  ass.  They  wanted  some 
polished  weapons  that  the  world  would  not  say  anything 
against;  but  Samson  came  down  from  the  rock,  and  took  up 
the  first  jaw  bone  of  an  ass  that  he  came  across,  and  went  out 
and  slew  the  Philistines  right  and  left.  What  was  wanted 
now  was  that  every  one  should  grab  up  the  first  jaw  bone  of  an 


i68  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

ass  that  he  could  lay  hold  of,  and  not  wait  to  do  some  great 
thing-.  How  absurd  it  must  have  looked  to  see  Gideon,  with 
his  three  hundred  men  with  their  pitchers!  What  queer  wea- 
pons those  were!  but  every  man  stood  in  his  place,  and  the 
result  was  that  they  routed  the  whole  army.  Look  at  Elijah 
fed  by  such  unclean,  contemptible  things  as  ravens ;  and  when 
the  Lord  sent  him  somewhere  else,  it  was  not  to  a  palace  or  to 
a  table  laid  with  good  things,  but  to  a  poor  widow  who  had 
scarcely  enough  for  a  meal  for  herself  and  her  boy.  So  it  was 
at  the  present  day,  for  God  was  unchangeable. 

"It  was  said  that  we  are  living  in  an  enlightened  age.  That 
might  be  true,  but  to  God  it  made  no  difference.  He  still  used 
base  and  contemptible  and  despised  things  to  effect  His  pur- 
pose. When  He  wanted  a  book  written  that  should  do  some 
good  to  the  world,  He  did  not  call  forth  a  philosopher,  but  a 
Bedford  tinker,  and  the  devil  had  his  match  when  he  got  hold 
of  John  Bunyan.  There  was  not  a  man  present  at  the  gath- 
ering whom  God  could  not  use  if  he  were  willing  to  be  used. 
There  was  not  a  man  in  all  Saul's  army  but  knew  that  God 
could  use  him  against  Goliath,  but  only  one,  and  he,  the 
youngest  of  Jesse's  family,  was  willing  to  be  used.  It  was 
said  of  David's  soldiers  that  they  were  all  right  and  left  handed 
men.  That  was  what  London  wanted  now,  men  who  could 
use  their  right  hand  or  their  left  hand,  their  eyes,  their  tongues, 
their  cars,  for  the  King  of  Glory.  Who  would  have  thought 
of  Elisha  to  take  the  place  of  the  wonderful  old  prophet  Eli- 
jah? Men  nowadays  would  go  to  the  schools  of  the  prophets 
and  pick  out  some  theological  professor,  but  Elijah  found  a 
man  behind  twelve  yoke  of  oxen,  and  Elisha  slew  his  oxen,  and 
started  off  with  Elijah,  consecrating  all  to  the  service  of  God. 
Christ  did  not  call  around  Him  the  learned  and  the  wise,  but 
Galilean  fishermen,  and  that  handful  of  men  shook  the  world. 
Even  before  he  could  use  Saul  the  name  had  to  be  changed  to 
Paul — the  Little.  What  London  wanted,  and  what  the  whole 
world  wanted,  was  not  eloquence,  but  Christ  and  Llim  cruci- 


MOODY  AND  SANKEY  IN  ENGLAND.  169 

fied.  Let  every  man  and  woman  then,  who  loved  the  Lord 
Jesus,  begin  to  publish  the  glad  tidings  of  salvation;  let  them 
talk  to  their  neighbors  of  the  love  of  Christ  and  so  rise  and 
take  the  city,  for  God  was  able  to  do  it.  The  world  did  not 
like  to  have  Christ  preached,  but  it  was  just  what  the  world 
did  not  like  that  Christians  must  give  it.  The  lion  of  hell  was 
overcome  by  a  lion;  but  the  Lion  of  the  tribe  of  Judah  was 
also  a  Lamb.  There  was  weeping  once  in  heaven  when  John 
found  no  one  worthy  to  open  the  book;  but  at  last  one  touched 
him,  and  said,  'Weep  not,  John,  for  there  is  one  worthy;  the 
Lion  of  the  tribe  of  Judah  has  prevailed  and  He  is  worthy.' 
And  when  John  turned  round  to  look  at  the  Lion,  it  was  a 
slain  Lamb.     God's  Lion  is  a  Lamb  slain. 

"Then,  to  attain  success  there  must  be  union  among  Chris- 
tians. There  were  three  classes  of  people  that  ought  to  sym- 
pathize with  this  movement.  Every  minister  who  wanted  to 
crown  Christ  king  ought  to  be  interested  in  the  work;  every 
Sabbath  school  superintendent  and  teacher,  every  missionary 
and  colporteur  ought  at  least  to  pray  for  it,  and  every  father 
and  mother  ought  to  join  in  it.  When  he  was  in  Liverpool  the 
other  day  a  woman  came  to  him  with  a  photograph  of  a  beau- 
tiful boy,  who,  she  said,  would  now  be  nineteen  years  old.  She 
said  he  had  had  trouble  and  had  fled  from  his  home.  She  did 
not  know  what  had  become  of  him,  and  she  asked  him  if  he 
saw  him  in  London,  to  try  and  win  him  to  the  Lord,  that  he 
might  come  back  to  cheer  her  heart.  There  were  many  such 
boys  in  London,  and  he  hoped  God  would  bring  them  to  Christ 
so  that  they  might  go  back  to  be  a  blessing  to  their  parents 
and  to  the  church  at  large.  To  all  such  he  would  say,  'Your 
mother  still  loves  you,  and  wants  you  to  return.  Her  heart 
is  breaking  for  you.  God  wants  you;  Jesus  wants  you.  There 
is  room  in  heaven  for  you.' 

"If  there  was  unity  among  God's  people  in  this  work,  no 
combination  of  power  could  stand  against  it.  When  the 
church,  tlxe  pulpit,  and  the  pew  were  all  of  one  mind,  Chris- 


I70  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

tianity  would  be  like  a  red  hot  ball  rolling  over  the  earth,  and 
all  the  hosts  of  death  and  hell  would  not  be  able  to  resist  it. 
'By  this,'  said  Christ,  'shall  men  know  that  ye  are  my  disciples 
if  ye  love  one  another.' 

"When  General  Grant  was  marching  on  Richmond  and  his 
army  had  been  repulsed  in  the  Wilderness,  he  called  his  com- 
manders together,  and  asked  them  what  they  thought  he  had 
better  do.  They  advised  him  to  retreat,  but  before  morning 
an  orderly  was  sent  round,  directing  an  advance  in  solid  col- 
umn on  the  enemy  at  daylight.  That  was  what  took  Rich- 
mond, and  broke  down  the  rebellion.  The  Christians  of  Lon- 
don, too,  must  lift  high  the  standard,  and  in  the  name  of  their 
God  advance  in  solid  column  on  the  enemy  before  daylight. 
Let  them  work  together,  shoulder  to  shoulder,  with  a  single 
eye  to  the  honor  and  glory  of  Christ ;  let  them  pray  that  they 
might  get  self  out  of  the  way,  and  that  Christ  might  be  all  in 
all,  and  then  they  would  have  success.  Let  their  watchword 
be,  'Here  am  I;  send  me,'  and  the  result  was  certain." 

The  first  daily  prayer  meeting  that  Mr.  Moody  attended 
was  the  one  held  on  Wednesday,  March  loth, 

IN  EXETER  HALL. 

In  three  days  of  noon  and  evening  services  about  eighty 
thousand  persons  listened  to  the  glorious  gospel  ot  the  blessed 
God.  "It  is  simple  truth  to  state  that  such  meetings  were 
never  held  before  in  London,  if  ever  they  were  held  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  world."  Sunday,  March  14th,  was  a  wonderful  day. 
Such  thousands  of  Christian  workers  had  never  assembled 
together  before.  Mr.  Moody's  theme  was  the  usual  one  for 
the  occasion.  Text,  Daniel,  12:3,  "They  that  be  wise  shall 
shine,"  etc.  At  the  afternoon  service  for  women  only,  up- 
wards of  seventeen  thousand  gathered.  Was  there  ever  such 
a  meeting  before?  More  anxious  souls  thronged  to  the  in- 
quiry room  than  it  could  contain.  The  evening  service  was 
for  men  and  an  hour  before  time  for  exercises  to  begin  the 


MOODY  AND  SANKEY  IN  ENGLAND.  171 

building  was  crowded,  doors  shut,  and  thousands  turned  away. 
Again  the  inquiry  rooms  were  crowded  and  Christians  enough 
to  talk  with  the  anxious  men  could  not  be  found.  And  this 
mighty  movement  in  the  souls  of  men  before  the  first  week 
had  ended!  Whence  could  this  power  be,  if  it  were  not  from 
God?  No  less  than  twenty  noonday  meetings  were  regularly 
held  in  London,  and  the  requests  for  prayer  were  far  too 
numerous  to  be  read.  But  whether  the  requests  came  up  from 
the  multitudes  in  the  East  End  in  broken  sentences,  or  were 
written  on  perfumed  paper  by  jewelled  hands,  there  was  the 
same  agony  of  appeal  for  divine  grace  and  help. 

BOW  ROAD  HALL 
in  the  East  End  was  a  wooden  structure  erected  to  hold  ten 
thousand  people,  but  this  was  all  too  small.  These  great  con- 
gregations of  the  miserably  poor  and  many  of  them  of  the 
miserably  degraded  recognized  the  sincerity  of  the  man  who 
spoke  to  them  in  that  familiar  manner  which  had  drawn  the 
population  of  The  Sands  to  the  Old  North  Market  Mission. 
Mr.  Moody  made  them  feel  that  he  was  their  brother  and  was 
not  ashamed  to  own  it.  They  listened  to  him  most  attentive- 
ly, eagerly,  drinking  in  new  hope  with  every  word  that  went 
home  to  their  hearts  with  the  greater  and  swifter  force  of  sal- 
vation. It  was  a  sight  to  make  saints  and  angels  glad  to  see 
hundreds  of  men  and  women,  old  and  young,  rise  in  that  vast 
audience  after  one  of  his  impetuous  appeals  to  signify  their 
desire  to  be  saved. 

Leaving  the  work  then  in  other  hands,  ]\Ioody  and  Sankey 
would  be  whirled  behind  the  fastest  horses  to  be  had,  to 

THE  QUEEN'S  OPERA  HOUSE, 
in  the  West  End  to  face  five  thousand  of  London's  most  fash- 
ionable and  aristocratic  population.  But  there  was  no  dififer- 
ence  between  a  sinner  driving  to  the  Opera  House  in  a  car- 
riage and  a  poor  outcast  dragging  himself  in  rags  to  Bow 
Road  Hall.     Instinctively  Mr.  Moody's  manner  changed  as 


172  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

he  addressed  these  circles  of  the  wealthy,  the  cultured  and 
the  aristocratic.  But  he  was  the  ambassador  of  the  Most 
High,  a  messenger  sent  In-  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ;  and  they 
instantly  recognized  a  loftiness  of  soul  in  his  simple,  manly 
earnestness  and  forgot  both  the  preacher  and  their  rank  as  he 
proclaimed  to  them  the  love  of  God  and  pointed  them  to  the 
Lamb  slain  for  the  sins  of  the  world. 

Hearts  are  alike  the  world  over.  Mr.  Moody  knew  the  gos- 
pel and  he  knew  Jesus  Christ,  the  only  Redeemer,  and  the 
quickest  way  to  Him.  They  wept  over  his  stories  illustrating 
the  love  of  Christ  for  lost  sinners,  sang  with  devout  rapture 
the  sweet  hynms  of  the  gospel,  and  thronged  the  inquiry 
rooms  seeking  the  Savior.  It  was  no  slight  evidence  of  the 
presence  of  the  love  of  God  in  the  hearts  of  many  of  the 
wealthy  and  cultured  men  of  business  or  of  leisure  that  more 
than  twenty-five  thousand  pounds — one  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  thousand  dollars — were  brought  in  and  cheerfully  given 
to  the  great  work  of  the  Lord. 

The  same  work  of  grace  went  forward,  but  with  some  fea- 
tures peculiar  to  itself,  in  Camborwell  Hall,  in  South  London, 
but  space  does  not  admit  of  any  extended  reference  to  that 
marvelous  work  of  grace  which  now  went  spreading  in  ever 
increasing  and  widening  circles  of  blessing  throughout  the 
great  city  of  London. 

By  this  time  the  religious  world,  and  the  secular  world  alike 
had  come  to  fully  recognize  the  fact  that  Mr.  Dwight  L. 
Moody  knew  and  could  teach  some  things  better  than  any 
man  in  Great  Britain — perhaps  in  the  world — these  three  es- 
pecially: First,  the  Doctrine  of  the  Atonement.  "Christ  died 
for  our  sins  according  to  the  scriptures";  second,  the  Doctrine 
and  experience  of  Regeneration,  "Ye  must  be  born  again;" 
third.  How  to  preach  this  gospel  to  the  masses. 

On  the  1 2th  of  July,  a  parting  meeting  of  thanksgiving  was 
held  at  Mildmay  Park  Conference  Hall.  About  seven  hun- 
dred ministers  were  present,  among  them  Dr.  A.  Bonar,  who 


MOODY  AND  SANKEY  IN  ENGLAND.  173 

brought  the  glad  tidings  that  the  churches  of  Glasgow  had  re- 
ceived seven  thousand  members  as  the  fruits  of  their  great  re- 
vival. 

In  trying  to  say  farewell  to  his  English  friends  who  had  sus- 
tained him  so  faithfully  in  his  great  mission,  Mr.  Moody  broke 
down  completely  and  was  compelled  to  leave  abruptly,  fol- 
lowed by  their  blessings  and  their  prayers. 

On  August  6th,  Messrs.  Moody  and  Sankey,  with  their  fam- 
ilies, sailed  from  Liverpool,  and  landed  in  New  York  on  the 
14th.  Mr.  Moody  had  left  New  York  a  comparatively  un- 
known mission  worker;  he  returned 

THE    GREATEST    EVANGELIST    OF    THE    NINE- 
TEENTH CENTURY. 

These  true  yoke  fellows  now  separated  to  their  respective 
early  homes  to  enjoy  a  brief  holiday  and  well-earned  rest.  Mr. 
Moody,  during  his  absence,  had  come  to  recognize  the  wider 
mission  to  which  God  was  calling  him,  and  having  decided  to 
make  Northfield  his  home,  he  purchased  for  some  $3000,  a 
plain,  but  roomy,  frame  house,  with  fine  grounds  attached,  not 
far  from  his  mother's  home.  Here  he  gave  himself  up  to  the 
more  systematic  study  of  his  well-marked  Bible,  and  to  the 
preparation  of  new  sermons.  The  spiritual  desolation  of  that 
community  and  region  so  pressed  upon  his  heart,  however, 
that  he  soon  began  a  series  of  meetings  which  were  crowded 
with  the  people  who  gathered  from  many  miles  around.  The 
final  services  were  held  on  Sunday  afternoon,  October  17th, 
at  which  the  cup  of  his  joy  was  filled  to  overflowing.  His 
younger  brother,  Samuel,  had  already  been  converted  under 
this  ministry,  but  his  mother  had  not  yet  heard  her  beloved 
son  preach.  As  they  were  getting  ready  to  drive  down  in  the 
old  farm  wagon,  the  mother  startled  her  daughter  by  saying: 

"I  don't  suppose  there  would  be  room  in  the  wagon  for  me, 
this  afternoon,  would  there?" 


174  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

"Of  course  there  will  be  room,  mother,"  said  the  daughter. 
And  the  mother  went  down  with  the  rest. 

Mr.  Moody  preached  with  more  than  usual  fervor,  that  was 
doubtless  greatly  increased  by  the  presence  of  his  mother. 
His  earnest  prayer  for  a  final  blessing  on  their  gatherings  was 
graciously  answered,  for,  when  those  who  wished  prayer  were 
asked  to  arise,  among  the  twenty-five  who  responded  was  his 
own  aged  mother. 

His  strength  gave  way  at  the  sight.  Tears  of  joy  ran  down 
his  face.  He  was  completely  overcome,  and  turning  to  his 
old  friend,  B.  F.  Jacobs,  of  Chicago,  he  said,  trembling  with 
emotion:  "You  pray,  Jacobs,  T  can't." 

Under  this  precious  baptism  of  joy  in  the  Holy  Ghost,  Mr. 
Moody  now  turned  with  renewed  eagerness  to  the  great 
fielcls  in  his  own  home  land  which  had  long  been  ripening  for 
a  glorious  harvest. 


Great  Work  in  Scotland. 

GOTLAND  is  no  stranger  to  especial  outpourings 
of  God's  Spirit.  In  the  sixteenth  century  under 
the  bold  preaching  of  John  Knox,  all  classes  felt 
his  power,  from  the  throne  to  the  humblest  cot- 
tage. An  English  ambassador  said  that  his 
preaching  "put  more  life  into  him  than  six  hundred  trumpets." 
Under  his  earnest  appeal  many  soldiers  enlisted  in  the  Ghris- 
tian  army;  long  established  evils  were  broken  up,  and  the  vi- 
brations caused  by  his  spiritual  thunder  have  not  yet  ceased 
to  reverberate  among  her  thousand  hills. 

When  Whitefield  visited  Scotland  in  1747,  he  preached  in 
Edinburgh,  Glasgow  and  Aberdeen,  with  great  success.  His 
matchless  eloquence  and  spiritual  fervor  drew  vast  throngs; 
.and  his  communion  services,  held  in  the  open  air,  were  some- 
times administered  in  the  presence  of  nearly  twenty  thousand 
people. 

About  the  middle  of  November,  1873,  two  plain  Americans 
bearing  the  humble  title  of  evangelists  entered  the  city  of 
Edinburgh.  They  had  neither  the  intellectual  strength  of 
John  Knox,  nor  the  glowing  and  lofty  eloquence  of  George 
Whitefield,  but  they  evidently  had  been  baptized  with  power 
from  on  high. 

When  Mr.  Moody  received  his  first  invitation  to  hold  meet- 
ings in  the  capital  of  Scotland,  it  was  with  some  misgivings 
that  he  accepted  them,  saying  to  himself,  "What  can  such  a 
man  as  I  do  up  there  amongst  those  great  Scotch  divines?" 

But  feeling  sure  that  God  was  able  with  a  worm  "to  thrash 
a  mountain,"  he  set  his  face  northward  to  begin  what  proved 
the  most  remarkable  series  of  meetings  Scotland  had  ever 
knoAvn. 

Their  coming  had  long  been  anticipated,  and  full  of  ardent 
longings  for  the  blessing  of  God  to  fall  on  their  beloved  city 


176  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

and  land,  daily  union  prayer  meetings  had  been  beg^un  which 
speedily  became  prophetic  of  the  glorious  work  that  was  to 
follow.  These  meetings  were  rapidly  crowded  from  place  to 
place  until  the 

ASSEMBLY  HALL  WAS  CROWDED. 

On  Saturday,  November  23d,  the  Music  Hall  was  densely 
crowded  at  the  opening  services  at  which  Moody  and  Sankey 
were  advertised  to  preach.  At  the  afternoon  service  Mr. 
Moody  was  unable  to  be  present.  In  the  evening  Mr.  San- 
key was  absent,  yet  both  meetings  were  wonderfully  blessed. 
This  awkward  beginning  was  set  down  as  providential  as 
showing  that  the  power  and  blessing  were  of  God,  and  not  of 
men.  From  the  very  first  no  place  in  Edinburgh  could  con- 
tain the  congregations  which  thronged  to  hear  them.  Three 
or  four  churches  were  constantly  in  requisition,  and  even  then 
it  was  necessary  to  attend  an  hour  or  two  before  the  time  ap- 
pointed, in  order  to  be  sure  of  admittance. 

"One  of  the  first  things  that  impressed  us,"  says  Mr.  Kel- 
man,  "was  the  extraordinary  voracity  of  Mr.  Moody's  faith. 
We  had  been  accustomed  to  go  to  the  meetings,  hoping  God 
would  bless  us.  But  Mr.  Moody  always  said,  'We  know  He 
will  bless  us,'  and  so  well  assured  w^as  he  that  God  delighted  to 
give  large  things  in  answer  to  prayer,  that  he  was  continually 
asking  for  blessings  which  were  out  of  all  proportion  to  our 
faith.  But  the  blessings  would  come;  sometimes  so  largely, 
that  we  did  not  know  what  to  do  with  them.  We  were  often 
absolutely  overwhelmed  with  the  power  and  the  glory  of 
God."  At  one  meeting  composed  of  sixty-six  young  men 
who  were  inquiring  what  they  must  do  to  be  saved,  sixty  of 
them  were  blessed  before  they  left  the  place. 

There  was  nothing  of  novelty  in  the  doctrine  which  Mr. 
Moody  proclaimed.  It  was  the  old  gospel — old,  yet  always 
fresh  and  young  too,  as  the  living  fountain,  or  the  morning 
sun,  in  which  the  substitution  of  Christ  was  placed  in  the  cen- 


GREAT  WORK  IN  SCOTLAND.  177 

fer,  and  presented  with  most  admirable  distinctness,  decision 
and  force.  It  was  spoken  with  impressive  directness,  not  as 
by  a  man  half  convinced  and  who  seems  always  to  feel  as  if  a 
sceptic  was  looking  over  his  shoulder,  but  with  a  deep  con- 
viction of  the  truth  of  what  he  said,  as  if  like  old  Andrew  Ful- 
ler, he  could  "venture  his  eternity  on  it."  It  was  also  spoken 
with  tremendous  earnestness,  as  if  he  felt  that  if  he  did  not 
speak,  the  very  stones  would  cry  out. 

PREACHING  IN  THE  GRASS  MARKET. 

At  first  the  work  of  grace  was  confined  to  the  middle  and 
upper  classes  of  society,  but  later  special  efforts  were  made  to 
reach  the  poor — and  they  are  poor,  indeed,  in  Edinburgh. 
Accordingly  meetings  were  begun  in  the  Corn  Exchange,  an 
immense  building  on  the  south  side  of  the  Grass  Market, 
which  lies  under  the  Castle  Hill.  The  meeting  on  Sunday 
night,  December  28th,  for  men  only,  was  one  of  the  most  ex- 
traordinary of  them  all.  The  building  was  crowded,  the  deep- 
est interest  prevailed.  Mr.  Sankey  sang  several  hymns,  such 
as  "The  Lifeboat,"  "The  Prodigal  Child,"  "Jesus  of  Nazareth 
Passeth  By." 

Mr.  Moody  began  his  address  by  telling  the  well-known 
story  about  Rowland  Hill  and  Lady  Erskine.  Her  ladyship 
was  driving  past  a  great  crowd  of  people  to  whom  Hill  was 
preaching.  She  asked  who  the  preacher  was,  and  on  being 
informed,  told  her  coachman  to  drive  nearer.  Rowland  Hill, 
seeing  her  approach,  asked  who  she  was,  and  when  he  was 
told,  he  said  there  was  a  soul  there  for  sale.  Who  would  bid, 
he  asked,  for  Lady  Erskine's  soul?  There  was  Satan's  ofifer. 
He  would  give  pleasure,  honor,  position,  and  in  fact  the 
whole  world.  There  was  also,  he  said,  the  offer  of  the  Lord 
Jesus,  who  would  give  pardon,  peace,  joy,  rest  and  at  last 
heaven  and  glory.  He  then  asked  Lady  Erskine  which  of 
these  bids  she  would  accept.  Ordering  her  coachman  to 
open  her  carriage  door,  she  pressed  her  way  through  the 


178  DWIGHT  I..  MOODY. 

crowd  to  where  the  preacher  was,  and  said,  "Lord  Jesus,  I 
give  my  soul  to  Thee;  accept  of  it." 

Mr.  Moody  then  went  on  to  urge  his  hearers  to  give  them- 
selves then  and  there  to  the  same  Savior,  who  was  that  day 
preached  in  the  hearing  of  Lady  Erskine  and  accepted  by  her. 
He  brought  out  the  freeness  of  the  gospel  offer,  and  the  im- 
portance of  immediately  closing  with  it.  He  then  asked  all 
who  were  anxious  and  desiring  to  be  saved  to  follow  him  up 
to  the  Free  Assembly  Hall.  A  great  crowd  did  so,  and  when 
they  appeared  there  the  doorkeeper  announced  to  Dr.  Bonar 
the  startling  news,  "that  Mr.  Moody  had  brought  up  the 
whole  Grass  Market  with  him."  The  body  of  the  Hall  was 
cleared  for  these  six  or  seven  hundred  anxious  souls.  Dr. 
Bonar,  in  referring  to  that  meeting  the  next  day  at  the  noon 
hour  of  prayer,  said:  "In  all  my  life  I  never  preached  to  such 
an  audience.  The  vast  multitude  bowed  under  the  simple 
preaching  of  the  gospel,  and  without  any  excitement  were 
melted  into  tears  of  penitence,  and  the  children  of  God  to 
tears  of  joy." 

NECESSITY  AND  POWER  OF  PRAYER. 

I  think  we  should  give  a  very  prominent  place  in  that  great 
revival  to  the  earnest  and  united  prayers  of  God's  children 
that  were  everywhere  and  continually  ascending  to  the  throne 
of  grace.  The  depth,  the  extent  and  permanency  of  the  work 
especially  were  measured  and  determined  largely  by  this 
wonderful  spirit  of  prayer  that  prevailed.  We  think  it  so  im- 
portant that  we  give  place  to  the  following  appeal  for  united 
and  fervent  supplication  which  was  sent  to  every  minister  of 
every  denomination  in  Scotland.  This  appeal  was  signed  by 
thirty  or  forty  of  the  most  prominent  pastors,  professors,  and 
honored  and  titled  laymen  in  the  grand  old  city  of  Edinburgh. 

"Edinburgh  is  now  enjoying  signal  manifestations  of  grace. 
Many  of  the  Lord's  people  are  not  surjjrised  at  this.  In  Octo- 
ber and  November  last,  they  met  from  time  to  time  to  pray 


GREAT  WORK  IN  SCOTLAND.  179 

for  it.  They  hoped  that  they  might  have  a  visit  from  Messrs. 
Moody  and  Sankey,  of  America,  but  they  very  earnestly  be- 
sought the  Lord  that  He  would  deliver  them  from  depending 
upon  them,  or  on  any  instrumentality,  and  that  He  Himself 
would  come  with  them,  or  come  before  them.  He  has  gra- 
ciously answered  that  prayer,  and  His  own  presence  is  now 
wonderfully  manifested,  and  is  felt  to  be  among  them.  God 
is  so  affecting  the  hearts  of  men  that  the  Free  Church  Assem- 
bly Hall,  the  largest  public  building  in  Edinburgh,  is  crowded 
every  day  at  noon  with  a  meeting  for  prayer;  and  that  building 
along  with  the  Established  Church  Assembly  Hall,  overflows 
every  evening  when  the  gospel  is  preached.  But  rhe  numbers 
that  attend  are  not  the  most  remarkable  feature.  It  is  the 
presence  and  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  the  solemn  awe,the 
prayerful,  believing,  expectant  spirit,  the  anxious  inquiry  of 
unsaved  souls,  and  the  longing  of  believers  to  grow  more  like 
Christ — their  hungering  and  thirsting  after  holiness.  The 
hall  of  the  Tolbooth  Church,  and  the  Free  High  Church,  are 
nightly  attended  by  anxious  inquirers.  All  denominational 
and  social  distinctions  are  entirely  merged.  All  this  is  of  the 
God  of  grace. 

"Another  proof  of  the  Holy  Spirit's  presence  is,  that  a  de- 
sire has  been  felt  and  expressed  in  these  meetings  that  all 
Scotland  should  share  the  blessing  that  the  capital  is  now  en- 
joying. 

"It  is  impossible  that  our  beloved  friends  from  America 
should  visit  every  place,  or  even  all  those  to  which  they  have 
been  urged  to  go.  But  this  is  not  ncessary.  The  Lord  is 
willing  Himself  to  go  wherever  He  is  truly  invited.  He  is  wait- 
ing. The  Lord's  people  in  Edinburgh,  therefore,  would  af- 
fectionately entreat  all  their  brethren  throughout  the  land  to 
be  importunate  in  invoking  Him  to  come  to  them,  and  to  dis- 
miss all  doubt  as  to  His  being  willing  to  do  so. 

"The  week  of  prayer,  from  the  4th  to  the  nth  of  January 
next,  affords  a  favorable  opportunity  for  combined  action.  In 


180  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

every  town  and  hamlet  let  there  be  a  daily  meeting  for  prayer 
during  that  week,  and  also  as  often  as  may  be  before  it.  In 
Edinburgh  the  hour  is  from  twelve  to  one  o'clock,  and  where 
the  same  hour  suits  other  places,  it  would  be  pleasing  to  meet 
together  in  faith  at  the  throne  of  grace.  But  let  the  prayers 
not  be  formal,  unbelieving,  unexpecting,  but  short,  fervent, 
earnest  entreaties,  mingled  with  abounding  praise  and  fre- 
quent short  exhortations;  and  let  them  embrace  the  whole 
world,  that  God's  way  may  be  known  upon  earth,  His  saving 
health  among  all  nations.  If  the  country  will  thus  fall  on 
their  knees,  the  God  whohas  filled  our  national  history  with 
the  wonders  of  His  love  will  come  again,  and  surprise  even 
the  strongest  believers  by  the  unprecedented  tokens  of  His 
grace.  'Call  unto  me  and  I  will  answer  thee,  and  show  thee 
great  and  mighty  things  which  thou  knowest  not.' 

WATCH  NIGHT  SERVICES  IN  EDINBURGH. 

When  the  bells  of  Tolbooth  Church  began  to  toll  for  the 
watch-night  services  at  eight  o'clock,  there  was  not  a  vacant 
seat  left  in  the  hall.  The  presence  of  the  Jubilee  Singers  also 
added  greatly  to  the  interest  of  the  meeting,  during  which 
any  one  was  allowed  to  sing,  or  pray,  or  speak  as  he  might  be 
moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost.  Mr.  Moody  said  he  meant  to 
speak  a  little  on  seven  "I  wills"  of  Christ,  (Matt.  iv:i9;  x:32; 
xi:28;  Luke  v:i2,  13;  John  vi:37;  xiv:i6;  xvii:24). 

Mr.  Sankey  sang  "The  Water  of  Life."  Mr.  Moody  then 
read  Luke  v:i2,  13:  'T  will;  be  thou  clean."  "Some  men  say 
they  are  too  vile  to  be  received  by  Christ,  but  He  says:  T 
will.'  John  Bunyan  was  such  a  vile  sinner  that  I  do  not  sup- 
pose the  society  of  Bedford  would  receive  him,  but  Christ 
did.  'Lord,  if  Thou  wilt.  Thou  canst  make  me  clean.'  'I  will, 
be  thou  clean,'  and  immediately  his  leprosy  departed  from 
him.  If  there  is  a  man  here  with  any  sin  to-night,  he  may 
come  to  Christ  and  be  cleansed,  and  enter  1874  with  a  new 
creation.'     There  was  an  abandoned  drunkard  in  America,  so 


GREAT  WORK  IN  SCOTLAND.  i8i 

lost  that  all  his  friends  forsook  him.  He  came  to  Christ,  and 
is  now,  perhaps,  the  finest  orator  that  ever  lived.  Jesus 
Christ  loves  you,  pities  you,  will  cleanse  you  if  you  come  to 
Him.  Kings  call  round  them  great  men,  but  Jesus  calls  the 
vilest  round  Him." 
(The  Jubilee  Singers  here  burst  into  "Come,  Come  to  Jesus.") 

"  'Whosoever  shall  confess  me  before  men,  him  will  I  con- 
fess also  before  my  Father  which  is  in  heaven.'  After,  Come 
and  be  made  clean  by  Christ,  comes  the  'I  will'  of  confession. 
We  require  boldness  to  confess  Christ.  When  I  visited  Bos- 
ton I  saw  many  grey  heads  there,  but  a  little  tow-headed  Nor- 
wegian boy  got  up  at  that  meeting  and  said,  'If  I  tell  the  world 
about  Jesus,  He  will  tell  His  Father  about  me.'  " 

Colonel  Davidson  said,  "There  is  nothing  more  difficult 
than  to  confess  Christ  in  a  barrackroom.  A  brave  soldier, 
who  had  won  the  Victoria  Cross,  told  me  that  he  was  ashamed 
to  pray  before  all  the  men  and  used  to  do  so  in  bed,  but  one 
night  he  felt  that  was  cowardly,  so  he  sprang  up  and  knelt 
down,  expecting  a  shower  of  boots  at  his  head;  but  no!  he 
was  not  disturbed,  and  the  men  showed  him  more  respect  ever 
afterward." 

Mr.  Moody:  "My  friend,  Mr.  Balfour,  says,  'Confess  Christ 
at  home.'  Yes,  at  first.  But  when  converted  it  is  very  im- 
portant to  make  a  stand,  and  confess  Christ  everywhere. 
Take  the  case  of  the  man  out  of  whom  Jesus  cast  a  legion  of 
devils;  he  wanted  to  go  with  Christ.  Howbeit,  Jesus  suffered 
him  not;  but  saith  unto  him,  'Go  home  to  thy  friends,  and  tell 
them  how  great  things  the  Lord  hath  done  for  thee,  and  hath 
had  compassion  on  thee.  (Mark  xiiq.)  He  was  to  go  home 
first,  but  after  that  he  went  to  Decapolis,  and  the  whole  re- 
gion was  stirred  by  his  preaching,  and  'all  men  did  marvel.' 
Christ  said,  'Go  home,  go  preaching.' 

NO  BISHOP  ORDAINED  HIM, 

but  off  he  went  at  once,  and  the  effect  was  marvelous."  Then 


i82  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

he  spoke  at  length  of  the  case  of  the  man  who  was  born  bUnd 
(John  ix:9).  Rev.  Mr,  Arnot  following  in  a  very  tender 
prayer. 

"Field  of  Labor,"  was  then  snng  by  Mr.  Sankey. 

Mr.  Moody  resumed  his  comments,  speaking  on  the  "I  will'' 
of  Matt.  iviiQ.  "Follow  me,  I  will  make  you  fishers  of  men." 
"Jesus  kept  His  word  to  Peter.  He  did  become  a  fisher  of 
men,  and  caught  in  one  day  three  thousand  of  them  in  the 
gospel  net.  This  past  year,  have  you  caught  anything?  'Fol- 
low me,'  says  Christ,  'and  I  will  make  you  successful.'  Look 
back,  do  you  know  of  any  saved  for  God?  I  pity  the  worldly 
Christians.  See  Lot,  knocking  at  the  doors  of  his  son-in-law 
and  relatives,  and  begging  them  with  fatherly  anxiety  to  flee 
from  the  doomed  city.  They  didn't  believe  him.  He  had  lost 
his  power  of  testimony;  he  had  no  influence;  leanness  had 
come  upon  him.  I  pity  the  child  of  God  who  has  no  influ- 
ence. If  others  do  not  follow  Christ  let  us.  Let  1874  be  a 
prosperous  year  to  every  child  of  God  here.  Let  us  leave  our 
'nets,'  and  let  our  first  thought  regarding  everyman  be,  how 
can  we  win  him  to  Christ?  You  do  not  know  how  much  you 
may  be  the  means  of  doing  for  Christ  during  1874,  if  you  will 
only  try.  One  may  convert  a  hundred,  and  from  a  hundred 
ten  thousand  may  be  saved.  These  may  w'in  a  hundred 
thousand  to  God.  The  little  rivulet  that  rises  like  a  thread  in 
the  mountain  becomes  at  length  a  great  river  when  it  falls  into 
the  sea.  Andrew,  looking  at  those  three  thousand  men  on 
the  day  of  Pentecost,  might  have  called  them  his  grandchil- 
dren. A  blind  man  was  seen  carrying  a  lantern,  and  was 
asked  what  he  did  that  for.  To  prevent  others  •stumbling 
over  me.'  We  are  either  winning  souls  to  Christ,  or  others 
are  stumbling  over  us." 

There  was  now  a  period  of  silent  prayer,  that  all  might  win 

souls  to  Christ  in  1874.     The  Jubilee  Singers  broke  the  silence 

with  that  beautifully  plaintive  melody,  "Steal  Away  to  Jesus." 

Mr.  Moody  continued  his  comments  uii  the  "I  wills"  to  that 


GREAT  WORK  IN  SCOTLAND.  183 

blessed  verse,  "Father,  I  will  that  they  also  whom  Thou  hast 
given  me  be  with  me  where  I  am,"  etc.  (John  xvii:24.)  "I 
have  formed  a  strong  love  for  the  people  that  I  have  met  here 
every  day,  and  I  feel  very  sad  about  going  away.  Death  will 
make  sad  separations.  It  is  now  on  the  stroke  of  the  last  hour. 
A  year  hence  a  good  many  here  will  be  in  their  graves.  Thank 
God  for  the  great  day  coming  when  we  will  be  gathered  round 
the  Master.  Perhaps  that  day  is  nearer  than  we  think  it.  The 
Bible  is  full  of  T  wills.'  We  have  been  three  hours  at  it  and 
have  only  looked  at  seven  most  sweet  ones." 

Thus  the  services  continued,  growing  more  solemn  as  the 
last  moments  drew  nearer;  personal  requests  for  prayer, 
praise,  and  brief,  fervent  petitions,  then  a  sacred  stillness,  the 
felt  presence  of  the  Master,  and  the  brooding  of  the  Spirit  of 
grace,  came  upon  the  hearts  of  the  whole  assembly.  The  emo- 
tions could  not  be  longer  suppressed.  The  gates  seemed  to 
stand  ajar;  heaven  never  seemed  to  be  so  near.  It  was  as  if 
their  hearts  were  pressed  close  to  the  heart  of  God. 

Five  minutes  before  the  hour  struck,  all  were  engaged  in 
silent  prayer — the  deep,  suppressed  breathing,  the  half-stifled 
sob  of  penitence  and  devotion — then  the  bells  pealed  forth  joy- 
ously to  usher  in  another  New  Year  of  blessed  opportunity. 
With  two  verses  of  "Jesus,  Lover  of  My  Soul,"  "Thou,  O 
Christ,  Art  all  I  want,"  and  the  benediction  by  Mr.  Moody, 
that  great  meeting  closed.  Then  suddenly  Mr.  Sankey  and 
the  Jubilee  Singers,  with  surcharged  hearts,  burst  forth  into 
joyous  and  triumphant  praise,  the  like  of  which  had  never  be- 
fore been  heard  in  any  service  in  Scotland. 

Such  was  the  introduction  to  the  year  1874.  For  Moody 
and  Sankey  it  was  to  find  a  glorious  issue  at  its  close  in  Man- 
chester, England,  where  Mr.  Moody  declared  that  it  had  been 
the  best  year  that  he  had  ever  had — the  one  in  which  he  had 
been  more  used  of  God  in  the  conversion  of  souls  than  in  all 
the  preceding  seventeen  years  of  his  life. 


i84  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

THE  GREAT  AWAKENING. 

The  awakening  of  Edinburgh  was  the  arousing  of  all  Scot- 
land. The  week  of  prayer  was  observed  with  a  Jaith  and  fer- 
vor before  unknown.  The  reports  of  the  meetings  had  gone 
throughout  all  the  land.  The  one  purpose  to  have  the  Lord 
Jesus  exalted  and  made  supreme,  and  His  glory  in  the  tri- 
umph of  His  gospel,  and  the  salvation  of  sinners,  made  mani- 
fest, united  the  ministers  and  Christian  people  of  every  name 
in  the  metropolis  of  Scotland.  Tens  of  thousands  of  men, 
women  and  children  of  all  classes  of  the  community  crowded 
the  halls  and  churches  during  all  the  weeks  the  meetings 
continued.  Multitudes  of  men  assembled  in  the  Corn  Ex- 
change; and  throngs  of  women  in  the  Assembly  Halls  and 
adjolnirfg  churches  on  the  Lord's  day  to  hear  words  whereby 
they  might  be  saved;  while  on  the  week-days  every  place 
where  services  were  held  was  crowded  with  eager,  anxious 
throngs  of  Christians  and  hundreds  seeking  the  way  of  life. 
In  th-2  inquiry  rooms  the  old  man  of  seventy  five  and  the  lads 
of  a  dozen  years  sat  side  by  side;  soldiers  from  the  castle,  and 
stud^ints  from  the  University,  the  backsliding,  the  intemper- 
ate, the  sceptic,  the  rich  and  the  poor,  the  educated  and  illiter- 
ate— all  seeking  the  way  of  life.  One  minister  said  after  but  a 
brif^f  experience  in  these  meetings,  "I  would  not  for  the  wealth 
of  a  world  have  the  recollection  of  what  I  have  seen  and  heard 
during  the  past  week  blotted  out  from  my  memory.  *  *  *  * 
It  has  been  like  eating  of  angels'  bread,  first  to  hear  the  cry 
of  conviction,  and  yet  more,  to  hear  at  length  the  utterance 
of  the  joy  of  reconciliation  and  peace."  Dr.  Horatius  Bonar 
declared  his  belief  "that  there  was  scarcely  a  Christian  house- 
hold in  all  Edinburgh  in  which  there  was  not  one  or  more  per- 
sons converted  during  that  revival."  The  wave  of  joy  that 
swept  over  that  city  where  upwards  of  three  thousand  pro- 
fessed to  have  accepted  of  Christ  as  their  Savior  made  it  seem 
more  like  heaven  than  earth. 


GREAT  WORK  IN  SCOTLAND.  185 

THE  GRACIOUS  VISITATION  OF  GLASGOW. 
After  a  two  weeks'  visit  at  Dundee  with  precious  results, 
Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  went  to  Glasgow  to  begin  the 
most  remarkable  series  of  meetings  they  had  ever  enjoyed. 
Thousands  of  names  were  about  to  be  enrolled  in  the  Lamb's 
Book  of  Life.  If  there  is  joy  in  the  presence  of  the  angels  of 
God  over  one  sinner  that  repenteth,  what  waves  of  intense 
delight  were  to  pass  over  the  celestial  hosts  as  they  looked 
upon  the  multitudes  now  walking  on  the  banks  of  the  beautiful 
Clyde,  that  would  one  day  be  found  upon  the  banks  of  the 
River  of  Life  that  floweth  forth  from  beneath  the  throne  of 
God  and  the  Lamb? 

It  was  on  Sunday,  eighth  of  February,  1874,  that  the  evan- 
gelists at  nine  o'clock,  in  the  city  hall,  surrounded  by  three 
thousand  Sabbath  school  teachers,  began  the  Lord's  work. 
What  a  change  seventeen  years  had  wrought  in  the  position 
of  Moody!  He  who  had  been  obliged  to  gather  a  class  for 
himself  ofif  the  streets  of  Chicago  before  even  a  mission  school 
would  give  him  a  place,  is  now  greeted  by  three  thousand 
teachers  who  are  thrilled  by  his  presence,  and  who  seek 
through  him  God's  richest  blessings  on  their  labors.  They 
would  salute  him  on  his  apostolic  journey  through  the  cities 
of  the  British  realms  with  the  shout,  "Give  God  the  praise." 

Mr.  Moody  took  this  way  of  engaging  the  prayer  and  the 
personal  interest  and  sympathy  of  three  thousand  Christian 
workers  for  Christ  at  the  very  beginning  of  his  labors.  His 
address  made  the  privilege  of  working  for  the  Lord  appear 
so  honorable  and  so  pleasant — especially  when  he  called  the 
laborers  to  leave  the  householder  to  give  whatsoever  he  might 
think  best  and  not  stop  to  bargain  first  ''for  a  penny  a  day," 
that  many  felt  truly  humbled,  and  all  were  fired  with  a  new 
desire  and  zeal  to  win  souls — a  work  of  privilege  which  an- 
gels might  almost  envy  the  children  of  men. 

The  evening  service  of  that  first  Sabbath  was  fixed  at  half 
past  six  at  the  City  Hall,  but  more  than  an  hour  before  the 


i86  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

time  it  was  crowded  in  every  corner,  and  the  immense  multi- 
tude outside  were  invited  to  the  three  nearest  churches,  which 
were  speedily  filled.  Mr.  Moody's  sermon  on  "The  Gospel' 
was  very  earnest  and  powerful,  while  the  singing  of  Mr. 
Sankey  was  at  once  felt  to  be  the  preaching  of  the  gospel  in  a 
new  and  most  attractive,  as  well  as  most  impressive,  melting 
form.  The  daily  prayer  meeting  of  Monday  following  was 
thronged  by  above  fifteen  hundred  people.  These  noon-day 
meetings  had  been  maintained  with  great  blessing  ever  since 
the  week  of  prater.  As  one  of  the  ministers  said,  Tt  is  not 
preaching  that  Scotland  needs;  it  is  prayer  and  power."  And 
there  the  power  was  bestowed  and  Ijclievers  were  filled  with 
the  Spirit  to  overflowing,  and  went  forth  inspired  with  a  new 
and  a  mighty  love  for  the  unsaved. 

Thursday  evening's  meeting  was  for  men  only.  The  City 
Hall  was  crowded  with  four  thousand  men.  The  very  appear- 
ance of  that  sea  of  faces  was  solemnizing,  as  every  one  gazed 
upon  Mr.  Moody  with  fixed  and  intense  earnestness. 

"EXCEPT  A  MAN  BE  BORN  AGAIN," 

was  his  theme.  Special  prayer  had  been  offered  for  his  ser- 
vice, and  it  was  marvelously  answered.  Mr.  Moody  spoke 
with  wonderful  power,  and  the  Spirit  moved  so  mightily  upon 
them  that  at  times  the  whole  audience  was  bowed  down  under 
the  truth.  Mr.  Sankey's  singing  was  with  great  effect. 
"Jesus  of  Nazareth  Passeth  By,"  brought  great  tears  from 
eyes  long  unused  to  weep.  More  than  a  thousand  remained 
for  prayer  and  conversation.  One  of  the  results  of  these 
meetings  was  a  call  for  the  Christian  young  men  of 
the  city  to  meet  with  Mr.  Moody  at  Ewing  Place  Chapel  to 
consult  as  to  what  they  might  do  to  forward  the  Lord's  work. 
In  response  to  a  request  from  Mr.  Moody  the  whole  number 
present,  nearly  seven  hundred,  rose  and  promised  to  band 
themselves  together  to  carry  out  his  suggestions  to  watch 
for  souls,  and  to  lav  hold  on  other  young  men.     They  were  to 


GREAT  WORK  IN  SCOTLAND.  187 

meet  every  night  at  Ewing  Place  Chapel,  their  purpose  to  try 
to  reach  as  many  as  they  could  out  of  Glasgow's  seventy-five 
thousand  young  men. 

On  Thursday  evening  February  24th,  a  memorable  scene 
occurred  in  the  chapel.  About  one  thousand  young  men  had 
been  addressed  by  a  deputation  of  four  students  from  Edin- 
burgh. Dr.  Cairns  followed,  then  Rev.  J.  H.  Wilson,  of  Edin- 
burgh brought  them  to  the  point,  "Why  not  to-night?"  Mr. 
Moody  coming  in  just  at  that  time  from  City  Hall,  felt  the  im- 
pression that  was  upon  the  meeting,  and  proposed  at  once 
that  an  opportunity  should  be  given  for  decision.  The  three 
front  rows  of  seats  were  cleared,  and  on  invitation  given  for 
all  who  desired  to  find  the  Savior,  to  come  forward,  they  were 
filled  at  once;  another  three  rows  also  were  cleared  and  as 
speedily  filled,  and  a  third  time  with  the  same  result.  Some 
one  present  counted  one  hundred  and  one;  and  it  was  ever 
afterwards  called  the  "One  hundred  and  one  night."  During 
prayer  intense  emotion  was  manifested  by  many;  and  Chris- 
tian friends  remained  talking  with  the  anxious  till  nearly  mid- 
night. It  is  said  that  this  was  the  first  time  the  so-called 
"altar  services"  were  ever  seen  in  Glasgow. 

MEETINGS  IN  A  SHIPBUILDING  YARD. 

At  one  of  the  noon  meetings,  a  gentleman  brought  Mr. 
Moody  a  paper  signed  by  five  hundred  w^orkmen  in  one  of 
the  ship  yards  of  Glasgow  requesting  a  visit  from  him  during 
tHeir  noon  intermission.  Accordingly,  on  March  30th, 
Messrs.  Moody  and  Sankey  spent  half  an  hour  at  the  plant  of 
Alexander  Stephen  and  Sons.  Nearly  two  thousand  work- 
men and  all  the  partners  of  the  firm  were  present.  IMr.  San- 
key opened  the  meeting  by  singing  with  great  pathos  the  well- 
known  and  favorite  solo,  "Jesus  of  Nazareth  Passeth  By." 
Prayer  was  offered,  and  Mr.  Sankey  sang  another  solo,  "The 
Lifeboat."  Mr.  Moody  then  delivered  a  very  solemn  and 
stirring  address  from  the  words  "Behold  I  bring  you  glad  tid- 


i88  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

ings  of  great  joy,"  and  a  deep  impression  seemed  to  have  been 
produced.  At  the  close  he  expressed  the  dehght  he  had  exper- 
ienced in  addressing  such  an  interesting  audience,  intimating 
that  arrangements  might  be  made  for  similar  aid  from  time  to 
time  to  those  seeking  thus  to  honor  the  Savior,  and  obtain 
blessings  for  themselves  and  others.  Mr.  Stephen,  speaking 
in  the  name  of  both  employers  and  employes,  expressed 
thanks  to  Messrs.  Moody  and  Sankey.  (this  is  quite  the  fash- 
ion over  there),  for  their  kindness  in  thus  complying  with  the 
requests  sent  to  them  last  week,  and  exhorted  all  present  to 
show  their  gratitude  by  accepting  Christ.  The  meeting  was 
brought  to  a  close  by  Mr.  Sankey  singing  the  solo,  "Prodigal 
Child." 

This  promise  of  Mr.  Moody's  was  kept  by  a  large  choir  con- 
senting to  go  down  twice  a  week  for  two  months  to  sing  for 
them,  and  by  this  means,  with  prayers  and  brief  addresses, 
many  of  the  workmen  were  led  to  the  Savior.  The  superin- 
tendent, Mr.  Howie,  said  that  scarcely  a  day  passed  without 
his  having  men  come  to  him  anxious  about  their  souls,  who 
had  been  awakened  by  the  singing  of  the  "Gospel  Hymns." 

THE  CRYSTAL  PALACE  MEETINGS. 

One  of  the  most  remarkable  gatherings  during  the  three 
months  of  their  stay  in  Glasgow  was  a  great  convention  of 
Christian  workers — an  all-day  meeting  held  in  the  Kibble 
Crystal  Palace,  in  the  Botanic  Gardens,  on  the  i6th  of  April. 
The  Palace,  which  can  be  seated  for  six  thousand  people, 
was  filled  to  overflowing.  Nearly  two  thousand  of  these  were 
ministers  and  office-bearers  from  Scotland  and  the  North  of 
England.  Dr.  Cairns  declared  this  "Christian  Convention  to 
be  unparalleled  in  the  history  of  the  Scotch,  perhaps  of  Brit- 
ish Christianity." 

The  interest  in  these  wonderful  meetings  culminated  in  the 
farewell  meetings  of  the  last  week,  May  12th  to  17th,  inclusive, 
which  were  also  held  in  the  Crystal  Palace, 


GREAT  WORK  IN  SCOTLAND.  189 

-  On  Tuesday  evening  the  meeeting  was  meant  especially  for 
warehouse  girls  and  girls  in  shops  who  had  been  prevented  by 
their  late  hours  of  labor  from  attending  the  other  services. 
Over  seven  thousand  five  hundred  tickets  had  been  distri- 
buted, hundreds  more  had  applied  for  them  in  vain.  When 
the  building  had  been  crowded  with  over  five  thousand  young 
women,  the  thousands  outside  were  addressed  by  various 
clergymen — the  greatest  good  humor  prevailing  even  where 
they  could  hear  nothing.  Wednesday  evening  was  for  men, 
and  upwards  of  seven  thousand  packed  themselves  within 
the  great  building  and  other  thousands  again  heard  the  word 
in  the  open  air.  Thursday  evening  was  open  to  all,  but  soon 
the  doors  had  to  be  shut.  Inquiry  meetings  were  held  in  a 
church  opposite  after  all  these  services,  with  precious  re- 
sults. On  Friday  came  the  young  converts^  meeting. 
Tickets  had  been  given  only  to  those  who  had  given  names, 
residence  and  names  of  their  ministers — for  everybody  in 
Scotland  belongs  in  some  parish.  About  three  thousand  five 
hundred  had  received  tickets  on  these  conditions,  the  rest  of 
the  space  being  filled  with  Christian  workers. 

In  speaking  of  this  memorable  occasion  one  writer  says: 
"^Jv.  Moody's  subject  was,  'What  God  is  able  to  do.'  He  was 
grand,  and  so  happy!  The  ministers  were  a  sight!  They  be- 
came quite  wrapt  up  and  excited.  It  was  a  treat  to  watch 
them.  Moody  talked  a  long  time;  Sankey  breaking  in  with 
'Daniel's  Band,'  and  'More  to  Follow.'  But  we  could  have 
listened  long,  all  night,  I  believe."  Mr.  Moody  in  speaking 
of  it,  said,  "It  seemed  as  if  we  were  then  receiving  the  Spirit 
as  a  seal  on  all  our  meetings. 

The  Saturday  noon  service  was  for  the  children,  while  the 
evening  service  was  specially  for  working  people.  But  Sun- 
day was 

THE  CROWNING  DAY  OF  ALL. 

It  was  a  lovely  May  morning.  The  early  service  was  for 
the  factory  and  shop  girls,  and  by  nine  o'clock  the  Palace  was 


190  DWIGIIT  L.  AIOODY. 

filled.     Mr.  Moody  spoke  to  them  from  the  text,  "There  was 
no  room  for  them  in  the  inn." 

The  evening  meeting  was  announced  for  half-past  six 
o'clock,  but  an  hour  before  that  the  great  building  was  full 
both  inside  and  outside,  as  an  Irishman  would  say.  Several 
ministers,  with  Mr.  Sankey  to  lead  the  singing,  began  the  ser- 
vices there,  but  by  the  time  Mr.  Moody  arrived  the  crowds 
filled  all  the  space  between  the  Palace  and  the  Botanic  Gar- 
dens. The  estimates  of  the  great  throng  ranged  from  fifteen 
to  thirty  thousand,  some  policemen  present  putting  the  num- 
ber much  higher.  On  seeing  the  nuiltitudes,  Mr.  Moody  de- 
termined to  preach  from  the  carriage,  in  which  he  was  driven 
to  a  central  and  commanding  ])osition.  When  this  fact  be 
came  known  to  those  within  the  building,  tliey  quickly  gath- 
ered on  the  outskirts  of  the  crowd.  To  those  who  were  near 
enough  to  hear  easily,  Mr.  Moody  seemed  to  surpass  himself 
in  earnestness,  loudness  and  force.  Mr.  Sankey's  voice  was 
distinctly  heard  all  over  that  vast  assembly,  as  he  sang  "Noth- 
ing but  Leaves,"  and  other  solos.  The  singing  of  hymns  by 
those  thousands  of  voices,  sotmding  forth  on  that  cjuiet  Sab- 
bath evening  was  deeply  impressive — the  whole  scene  one  the 
like  of  which  had  never  been  witnessed  before.  When  the 
out-door  service  was  over,  the  multitudes  slowly  dispersing, 
five  thousand  anxious  hearts,  and  Christian  workers  gathered 
in  the  Palace  to  hear  for  the  last  time  the  voice  of  one  whom 
they  had  learned  to  love  with  such  deep  affection.  That  meet- 
ing continued  till  long  after  ten  o'clock.  Tt  was  a  service  of 
praise  and  prayer  and  of  testimonv  and  thanksgiving  for  what 
God  had  wrought  among  them.  Many  were  greatly  moved 
as  Mr.  Moody  spoke  his  last  solenui  words.  And  then,  as 
the  twilight  was  rapidly  deepening,  one  last  appeal  was  made 
to  those  who  felt  that  they  were  still  unsaved,  but  desired  to 
find  the  Savior.  The  emotion  became  intense  as  four  or  five 
hundred,  perhaps  many  more,  quietly  rose  all  over  the  house, 
and  as  quietly  resumed  their  places.     Was  it  not  the  Spirit  of 


GREAT  WORK  IN  SCOTLAND.  191 

God  brooding  over  the  darkness  and  chaos  of  unhappy  souls 
with  the  promise,  "At  evening  time  there  shall  be  light"? 

Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  returned  at  once  to  Edinburgh 
to  hold  three  days  services  before  starting  on  their  northern 
tour.  Those  were  days  of  great  joy  in  that  city,  where  God 
had  done  such  great  things  for  them.  Rev.  Robert  Howie, 
of  Glasgow,  gave  witness  to  the  gracious  and  wonderful  work 
wrought  there.  He  stated  that  the  three  thousand,  five  hun- 
dred converts  attending  their  farewell  meeting  did  not  repre- 
sent more  than  one-third  of  those  who  had  been  converted, 
and  at  that  last  service  in  Crystal  Palace,  ''about  two  thous- 
and rose  up  asking  to  be  prayed  for — seeking  the  Savior." 

Thursday  evening,  while  yet  there  were  several  hours  of 
sunshine  to  fall  upon  that  ancient  and  glorious  old  city  of 
Edinburgh,  and  upon  her  beautiful  hills,  tens  of  thousands  of 
people  hastened  out  to  Queen's  Park,  on  the  way  to  Saint 
Anthony's  Well,  to  attend  the  five  o'clock  farewell  service. 
The  word  was  with  power.  Earnestly  and  faithfully,  was  the 
gospel  once  more  proclaimed,  so  simply  that  all  could  under- 
stand. It  was  a  day  of  grace  to  many,  a  day  of  thanksgiving 
to  many  thousands  more.  Then  the  last  solo  of  gospel  en- 
treaty, the  last  prayer,  and  the  benediction.  "There  never  was 
such  a  scene  witnessed  in  Edinburgh,  or  anywhere  else,  so  far 
as  we  have  ever  heard." 

Through  all  that  lovely  summer,  through  all  the  cities  of  the 
north  and  west, the  evangelists  went  everywhere,  preaching  the 
glorious  gospel  of  the  Son  of  God;  "and  great  grace  was  upon 
them  all."  On  the  morning  of  September  4th,  they  took 
steamer  on  the  Clyde  for  Belfast,  Ireland,  after  more  than 
nine  months  of  harvest  toil  in  the  vineyard  of  the  Master. 
The  song  of  the  reapers  was  still  filling  the  air  and  floating 
far  out  to  sea;  wdiile  above  all  might  have  been  heard  the 
voices  of  the  lately  redeemed  ones  chanting  "The  Lord  hath 
done  great  things  for  us,  whereof  we  are  glad.  Praise  ye  the 
Lord." 


The  Great  Revival  in  Philadelphia. 

DESIRE  here  to  acknowledge  the  extreme  courtesy 
and  kindness  shown  me  in  being  granted  permission 
to  make  use  of  the  "Life  of  George  H.  Stuart"  writ- 
ten by  himself,  in  preparing  this  work  of  Dwight  L. 
Moody.  I  believe  it  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  for  a 
period  extending  over  thirty  years  Mr.  Moody  had  no  warm- 
er hearted,  no  more  devoted,  nor  more  faithful  friend;  none 
to  whom  he  owed  a  larger  debt  of  gratitude  for  personal  as- 
sistance rendered  and  kindness  shown,  than  Mr.  George  H. 
Stuart,  the  sweetest  tempered,  the  most  spiritually  minded, 
the  most  unselfish  and  the  most  generous  Christian  philan- 
thropist that  Philadelphia  has  ever  known.  The  Lord  Jesus 
swung  his  second  great  commandment  on  a  jewelled  balance 
when  he  said  "Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself."  If 
ever  a  man  exceeded  that  standard  of  duty  it  was  Mr.  Stuart, 
who  literally  made  himself  poor  that  he  might  make  many 
rich.  A  name  inseparably  associated  with  that  of  Mr.  Stu- 
art's in  the  most  wonderful  revival  services  that  America  has 
ever  seen,  is  that  of  Mr.  John  Wanamaker,  whose  bow  still 
abides  in  its  strength.  There  was  no  sight  more  interesting 
and  touching  than  the  daily  presence  upon  the  platform  of 
Messrs.  George  H.  Stuart  and  John  Wanamaker — the  gray 
head  and  the  brown  head  consulting  and  rejoicing  together — 
the  one  overcoming  the  infirmities  of  advancing  years,  and 
bringing  forth  fruit  in  old  age  with  twofold  the  fire  and  en- 
thusiasm which  God  gives  to  most  of  us  younger  men  in  our 
best  days;  the  other  consecrating  with  greatest  devotion  his 
executive  ability  and  gifts  of  mind  and  voice  to  the  service  of 
God. 

Mr.  Stuart  thus  writes:  "The  great  event  in  the  religious 
history  of  our  city  during  the  year  1875  was  the  series  of 


John  Wanamaker. 


Rev.  J.  Wilbur  Cha[)man. 


THE  GREAT  REVIVAL  IN  PHILADELPHIA.  193 

evangelistic  meetings  held  by  Mr.  D.  L.  Moody  in  the  old 
freight  depot  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad,  Even  before  the 
war  I  knew  of  Mr.  Moody  as  a  faithful  laborer  in  the  Sabbath 
school  cause  in  Chicago.  In  the  labors  of  the  Christian 
Commission  he  was  one  of  our  most  efificient  workers,  and 
the  first  of  our  delegates  to  enter  Richmond  after  its  evacua- 
tion by  the  Confederate  government.  After  the  war  it  was 
my  privilege  to  bring  him  to  Philadelphia  in  1866,  before  he 
had  become  widely  known  to  the  country,  and  it  was  with 
some  difficulty  that  I  procured  any  church  for  his  evangelistic 
meetings.  I  finally  obtained  the  Central  Presbyterian 
Church,  of  which  Dr.  Alexander  Reed  had  become  pastor 
through  my  recommendation. 

Mr.  Moody  soon  crowded  the  house  and  the 
lecture  room  at  the  close  of  his  meetings  was 
thronged  with  inquirers.  Yet  some  really  good  peo- 
ple said  it  was  a  mistake  to  have  the  pulpit  occupied  by  a  man 
who  murdered  the  King's  English  as  Mr.  Moody  certainly 
did  when  he  first  began  to  preach.  I  replied  that  I  cared  lit- 
tle or  nothing  about  his  grammar  so  long  as  he  brought  sin- 
ners to  Christ.  And  Dr.  Newton,  of  Epiphany  Church  was 
of  the  same  opinion,  for  he  was  so  impressed  by  his  work 
that  he  opened  that  large  church  to  him. 

Upon  the  return  of  Messrs.  Moody  and  Sankey  from  Eng- 
land, in  1875,  there  was  a  great  desire  expressed  in  Philadel- 
phia to  have  them  visit  our  city,  Mr.  Moody  never  having 
been  here  since  he  and  Mr.  Sankey,  in  1871,  had  united  their 
talents  for  the  service  of  the  Master.  At  one  of  the  largest 
ministerial  meetings  ever  held  in  Philadelphia,  in  the  lecture 
room  of  the  Arch  Street  Methodist  Church,  over  which  Rev. 
Dr.  Harper  presided,  a  unanimous  and  cordial  invitation  was 
extended  to  these  evangelists  to  visit  our  city  at  an  early  day. 
A  committee  of  ministers,  of  which  Dr.  Newton  was  chair- 
Snan,  was  appointed  to  superintend  the  spiritual  part  of  the 
work,  while  a  committee  of  laymen,  of  which  I  was  made 
13 


194  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

chairman,  was  constitued  to  look  after  the  business  matters 
in  connection  with  the"  proposed  meetings.  On  account  of 
faiUng  heahh  I  at  first  decHned  to  serve,  but  Mr,  Moody,  who 
was  then  the  guest  of  Mr.  Wanamaker,  hearing  that  I  had  de- 
clined, insisted  on  my  acting,  saying  that  he  would  pray  for 
me.  And  here  I  may  add  that  for  the  first  time  in  thirty  years 
I  was  entirely  free  from  asthma  for  over  six  months  follow- 
ing this  promise,  and  that  during  all  the  cold  winter  weather, 
and  amid  such  exposure  as  I  for  years  had  not  dared  to  en- 
dure. Mrs.  Stuart  was  so  much  impressed  by  this  fact  that 
she  recently  wrote  to  Mrs.  Moody  to  get  Mr.  Moody  to  pray 
for  me  again. 

When  our  business  committee  met  the  first  question  was, 
where  shall  we  find  a  building  large  enough  and  central 
enough  for  the  intended  meetings?  Various  halls  were 
named,  including  the  large  Academy  of  Music;  but  I  insisted 
that  none  of  these  would  be  large  enough  to  warrant  us  in 
bringing  these  evangelists  to  Philadelphia,  and  that  we  must 
raise  the  money  necessary  to  erect  a  special  building  for  their 
use.  At  this  time  I,  with  one  other  gentleman,  was  aware 
of  the  fact  that  Mr.  Wanamaker  had  been  negotiating  with 
the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  Company  for  the  purchase  of  the 
large  freight  depot  at  Thirteenth  and  Market  streets,  which 
had  recently  been  abandoned  and  which  is  now  covered  by 
his  immense  warehouse.  As  the  oflfer  of  Mr.  Wanamaker 
had  not  been  accepted,  I  applied  to  Mr.  Thomas  A.  Scott,  the 
president  of  the  road,  to  know  on  what  terms  he  would  rent 
the  freight  depot  to  us  for  the  proposed  meetings.  His  re- 
ply was,  "One  dollar  per  annum,  provided  you  will  give  us 
possession  on  thirty  days'  notice."  I  cabled  this  to  Mr. 
Wanamaker,  who  was  in  Europe  at  the  time,  and  he  replied 
that  he  was  going  to  start  at  once  for  home. 

T  recall  distinctly  the  thrill  of  glad  surprise  that  ran  through 
the  audience  at  the  next  ministers'  meeting  when  Mr.  Stuart 
stated  that  when  a  gentleman  now  on  his  way  across  the  At- 


THE  GREAT  REVIVAL  IN  PHILADELPHIA.  195 

lantic  should  arrive,  the  question  as  to  a  place  would  soon  be 
settled;  and  the  whisper  was  that  Mr.  Wanamaker  was  going 
to  buy  the  old  depot.  Soon  after  his  return  the  purchase  was 
completed  and  the  free  use  of  it  was  granted  for  the  meetings 
as  long  as  desired.  In  order  to  prepare  it  for  these  meetings 
a  large  amount  of  money  was  required,  but  this  was  quickly 
subscribed,  an  architect  was  secured  and  the  vast  edifice  was 
fitted  with  a  complete  wooden  interior  structure  to  deaden 
the  noise  from  the  street,  with  new  floors,  a  platform  to  seat 
one  thousand  persons,  and  eight  thousand  and  nine  hundred 
and  four  chairs  on  the  main  floor;  thirteen  hundred  and  four 
on  the  platform,  and  seven  hundred  and  fifty-two  in  the 
committee  rooms.  These  ten  thousand  nine  hundred  and 
sixty  chairs  I  purchased  and  had  shipped  from  Connecticut, 
at  a  cost  of  twenty-eight  cents  per  chair.  This  I  believe  w^as 
the  largest  lot  of  chairs  ever  bought  in  this  country. 

Two-thirds  of  the  way  the  floor  sloped  upward  until  it 
reached  Market  street  front,  an  arrangement  which  gave 
every  one  in  the  audience  equal  opportunity  of  seeing  and 
hearing.  A  vestibule  thirty-three  feet  wide  ran  around  three 
sides  of  the  building,  and  ten  doors  gave  egress  from  this — 
the  largest  being  the  three  on  Market  street,  which  were  the 
chief  entrances.  There  were  four  main  aisles  from  eight  to 
ten  feet  in  width,  and  four  cross  aisles  six  to  eight  feet  wide. 
Speaking  tubes  gave  immediate  communication  between  the 
chief  usher  and  his  three  hundred  unpaid  assistants,  and  be- 
tween his  platform  and  the  speakers'  platform,  as  also  with 
the  Central  Police  Station;  there  was  telegraphic  communi- 
cation. The  building  was  lighted  by  about  a  thousand  gas 
jets. 

Although  the  hall  was  so  large,  its  acoustic  properties  were 
found  admirable,  and  Mr.  Moody  could  be  heard  perfectly  in 
any  part  of  the  building. 

While  I  was  superintending  the  work  of  preparation,  on  a 
cold  day  in  October  the  building  being  unheated,  one  of  our 


196  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

prominent  ministers  happened  to  come  in,  and  asked  me  how 
many  seats  were  being  provided.  When  I  told  him  the  num- 
ber he  expressed  great  astonishment,  saying,  "Why,  Spur- 
geon  could  not  fill  these  chairs  on  every  week  night  but  Sat- 
urday, and  do  you  expect  Moody  to  fill  them?"  I  told  him  I 
did.  Shortly  afterwards  this  same  minister  said  to  a  friend  of 
mine,  after  relating  the  circumstance  referred  to,  that  he 
never  before  thought  that  I  was  a  fit  subject  for  an  insane 
asylum.  While  the  doors  were  closed  on  a  cold  winter  night 
in  January  and  orders  had  been  given  to  allow  no  other  per- 
sons to  come  in,  the  house  being  crowded,  this  same  minister 
knocked  at  the  door,  and  had  his  card  sent  up  to  me  on  the 
platform  with  a  request  that  I  would  have  him  let  in,  which 
I  did. 

"From  November,  1875,  until  April,  1876,  this  vast  hall  was 
so  crowded  at  times  and  that  in  all  weathers,  that  the  street 
cars  were  blocked  up  by  the  throngs  outside  seeking  admis- 
sion. People  came  from  far  and  near  in  the  country,  and  a 
day  seldom  passed  without  my  receiving  many  letters  asking 
me  to  secure  seats  for  the  writers.  Among  these  letters  there 
came  one  from  an  eminent  judge  of  the  Supreme  Court,  ask- 
ing how  it  would  be  possible  for  the  members  of  that  court  to 
gain  admission  without  being  obliged  to  mingle  with  the 
throng  that  waited  in  the  streets  for  the  opening  of  the 
doors.  After  fixing  the  night,  I  replied  that  I  should  be 
obliged  to  place  the  judges  under  arrest  at  the  corner  of  Thir- 
teenth and  Chestnut  streets,  where  a  band  of  police  officers 
would  conduct  them  to  the  platform.  It  may  not  be  amiss  to 
state  that  Mr.  Moody's  preaching  was  not  in  vain  in  the  case 
of  one,  at  least,  of  these  gentlemen,  who  was  converted  in 
answer  to  the  prayers  of  a  Christian  wife. 

"Among  other  distinguished  men  from  a  distance  whom  I 
was  enabled  to  furnish  with  seats  on  the  platform  were  Presi- 
dent Grant  and  most  of  the  members  of  his  cabinet,  who 
were  accompanied  there  by  Mr.  Childs,  at  whose  house  I  had 


THE  GREAT  REVIVAL  IN  PHILADELPHIA.         197 

dined  with  them  the  previous  day,  when  it  was  arranged  that 
I  should  secure  them  seats  for  the  next  evening.  The  only 
one  of  all  the  meetings  that  1  missed  attending  was  on  this 
evening,  when  I  dined  with  Mr.  Childs,  and  this  I  would  not 
have  done  but  for  the  prospect  of  securing  the  attendance  of 
General  Grant  and  his  cabinet. 

"Next  after  the  power  and  spirituality  of  Mr.  Moody's 
preaching,  the  most  notable  thing  in  the  management  of  these 
meetings  was  his  generalship  in  handling  his  audience  of  over 
ten  thousand  men  and  women  of  all  classes  in  society,  while 
dealing  with  topics  which  profoundly  stir  the  emotions. 

"I  can  truly  say  that  his  leadership  was  wonderful.  Every 
one  was  impressed  by  it  who  gave  a  moment's  thought  to  the 
difficulties  of  the  situation.  No  interruptions,  no  ejacula- 
tions, even,  were  allowed.  When  a  colored  woman  could  no 
longer  keep  in  her  'Hallelujah,'  he  stopped  preaching  and  said, 
'We  will  sing  'Rock  of  Ages,'  while  th^.  person  is  taken  out.' 
After  the  singing  he  quietly  said,  'In  a  great  audience  like  this 
it  is  necessary  to  have  perfect  quiet;  and,  although,  I  do  not 
object  to  a  hearty  'amen!'  when  a  man  feels  it  in  his  heart,  it 
will  be  much  better  for  you  to  wait  till  you  get  outside,  and 
then  you  can  go  all  the  way  home  shouting  'amen!'  as  loud  as 
you  please.' 

"It  was  this  wise  insistence  upon  self  control  which  saved 
Mr.  Moody's  meetings  from  those  nervous  and  physical  ex- 
travagances which  sometimes  have  attended  even  a  genuine 
work  of  grace. 

MR.  MOODY  TOOK  COMMAND 

on  the  very  first  day  of  the  meeting,  in  a  pleasant  and  cour- 
teous, but  firm  way.  He  told  the  huge  audience  gathered  for 
the  first  time  and  most  of  them  entire  strangers  to  him,  'The 
doors  will  be  closed  when  the  service  begins  because  we  have 
ah  quiet  during  these  services.  We  shall  close  these  doors  if 
the  place  is  only  half-full;  and  if  the  president  of  the  United 


198  DWIGIIT  L.  MOODY. 

States  comes  after  that  he  can't  get  in.  If  the  chairman  of  the 
committee,  (meaning-  myself),  is  not  here  by  half-past  seven, 
we  shall  keep  him  out.' 

"The  arrangements  as  to  the  character  and  order  of  the 
meetings  were  made  with  Dr.  Newton's  committee  of  minis- 
ters. 

THREE  SERVICES  A  DAY 

were  held  in  the  depot,  except  on  Saturday,  some  for  men 
only,  others  exclusively  for  women.  Some  were  held  especial- 
ly for  Christian  workers,  while  others  were  for  the  general 
public,  and  were  followed  by  inquiry  meetings,  in  which  Mr. 
Moody  had  the  aid  of  a  large  staff  of  ministers  and  laymen, 
and  devoted  Christian  women.  On  Sabbath  there  were  three 
such  services,  Mr.  Moody  preaching  at  all  three,  in  addition  to 
his  week-night  labors." 

After  the  main  noon-day  services  were  over  in  the  old  de- 
pot, special  meetings  for  young  men  were  held  in  the  Metho- 
dist Church,  corner  of  Broad  and  Arch  streets,  which  were 
conducted  by  Mr.  John  Wanamaker  with  great  prudence  and 
skill.  Opportunity  for  giving  testimony  was  afforded  the 
young  converts,  many  requests  for  prayer  were  offered,  and 
a  great  many  young  men  were  brought  to  a  full  decision  for 
Christ. 

THE  NOON-DAY  PRAYER  MEETINGS 

on  Fridays  were  always  devoted  to  temperance  and  a  great 
many  drunkards  were  redeemed. 

On  Friday,  December  31st,  Mr.  Moody  spoke  on  the  "Res- 
urrection Power  of  Christ,"  from  the  text,  Matt.  XXVIII :i8, 
"All  power  is  given  unto  me  in  heaven  and  in  earth."  In 
speaking  briefly  on  this  theme  Mr.  Moody  said  that  during  the 
past  week  a  prominent  Christian  man  had  said  that  he  did  not 
believe  that  a  woman  who  had  sunk  very  low  through  intem- 
perance could  be  reclaimed;  "But  when  we  come  to  this  chap- 
ter and  read  the  words  of  the  Risen  Savior,  we  nuist  see  that 


THE  GREAT  REVIVAL  IN   PHILADELPHIA.  199 

there  is  hope  for  every  drunkard  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  His 
grace  is  sufficient  for  every  man's  need." 

Mr.  Sankey  led  in  the  singing  of  "Yield  not  to  temptation," 
and  then  the  meeting  was  thrown  open  for  testimony  from 
reformed  men.  One  after  another  testified  to  having  been 
snatched  as  brands  from  the  burning.  One  young  man  re- 
lated in  a  very  touching  manner  the  story  of  his  dissipated 
life,  how  he  was  redeemed  by  the  faith  and  the  prayers  of  his 
mother.  The  appetite  for  liquor  was  still  strong  in  him, 
though  God  had  kept  him  from  temptation  for  the  three  years 
past. 

The  year  closed  with  a  most  memorable 

WATCH-NIGHT  SERVICE. 

Long  before  the  meeting  was  to  begin — nine  P.  M. — the 
building  was  crowded  and  so  great  was  the  pressure  that  sev- 
eral ladies  fainted.  Upwards  of  twelve  thousand  persons  were 
present.  Mr.  Moody  preached  a  very  powerful  sermon  from 
the  text  I  Kings,  XVni:2i,  "How  long  halt  ye  between  two 
opinions?"  Mr.  Sankey  sang,  "Rejoice,  be  glad,"  and  "Nine- 
ty and  Nine."  Mr.  Moody  then  said  he  would  turn  the  whole 
service  into 

AN  INQUIRY  MEETING. 

"Here  is  Dr.  Plummer,"  he  said,  "seventy-four  years  old. 
For  fifty-five  years  he  has  been  sitting  at  the  feet  of  Jesus.  I 
am  going  to  put  him  on  the  witness  stand  and  question  him 
before  you  all.  The  doctor  will  take  the  pulpit."  The  ven- 
erable old  man,  with  flowing  white  hair  and  beard,  stepped 
forward,  and  Mr.  IMoody,  assuming  the  attitude  of  an  inquirer, 
presented  one  after  another  many  of  the  difficulties  and  ob- 
jections that  are  often  made  by  those  who  are  awakened  to 
some  sense  of  their  need  of  a  Savior. 

The  doctor  answered  with  wonderful  force  and  felicity. 
These  questions  and  answers  were  printed  in  tract  form,  and 


200  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

very  widely  circulated.  We  present  just  a  few  of  them,  some- 
what condensed,  but  in  the  very  words  which  were  used. 

Mr.  Moody:  "What  is  conviction?" 

Dr.  Plummer:  "Conviction  is  a  clear  persuasion  that  a  thing 
is  true.  Religious  conviction  is  a  clear,  settled  persuasion  of 
five  things :  First,  that  I  am  ignorant  and  need  instruction; 
second,  that  I  am  guilty,  and  deserve  wrath  and  not  pardon; 
third,  that  my  heart  is  vile,  and  must  be  renewed;  fourth,  that 
my  condition  is  miserable  and  that  I  am  poor  and  naked,  and 
blind  and  wretched;  fifth,  that  I  am  without  strength;  I  cannot 
save  myself." 

"What  is  the  use  of  conviction?" 

"It  is  to  light  up  the  soul  to  the  faith  of  Jesus." 

"Is  any  amount  of  distress  necessary?" 

"Lydia  had  no  distress;  God  opened  her  heart  and  she  gave 
attention  to  the  things  spoken  by  Paul.  The  jailer  of  Philippi 
would  not  have  accepted  Jesus  without  alarm.  If  a  man  will 
accept  the  Son  of  God,  he  need  have  no  trouble." 

"What  is  conversion?" 

"To  be  converted  is  to  turn  from  self,  self-will,  self-right- 
eousness, and  from  sin,  and  to  be  turned  to  Christ.  The  turn- 
ing point  is  man's  conversion,  is  his  acceptance  of  Jesus 
Chr'ist." 

"Why  must  a  sinner  come  to  Christ  for  salvation?" 

"Because  Christ  is  the  only  Savior.  All  the  angels  in 
heaven  and  all  the  saints  on  earth  can  not  save  one  sinner." 

"Can  a  man  be  saved  here  to-night  before  twelve  o'clock? — 
saved  all  at  once?" 

"In  my  Bible  I  read  of  three  thousand  men  gathered  to- 
gether one  morning,  all  of  them  murderers,  their  hands  stained 
with  the  blood  of  the  Son  of  God.  They  met  in  the  morning, 
and  before  night  they  were  all  baptized  members  of  Christ. 
God  added  unto  the  church  daily  such  as  should  be  saved.  If 
you  are  ever  saved,  there  must  be  a  moment  when  you  accept 
Christ  and  renounce  the  world." 


THE  GREAT  REVIVAL  IN  PHILADELPHIA.         201 

"What  is  repentance?" 

"It  is  turning  to  God  with  abhorrence  of  sin,  and  cleaving  to 
Christ  with  promise  of  obedience.  A  thorough  change  of 
heart  is  followed  by  a  thorough  change  of  character." 

"How  can  I  know  that  I  am  saved?" 

"The  fact  that  God  is  true.  It  is  the  word  of  the  living  God, 
whose  name  is  Amen.  'He  that  beheveth  on  the  Son  of  God 
hath  everlasting  life.'  " 

"What  if  I  haven't  got  faith  enough?" 

"Glory  be  to  God,  if  I  can  touch  the  hem  of  my  Savior's  gar- 
ment, I  shall  be  saved.  A  little  faith  is  as  truly  faith  as  a 
great  deal  of  faith.  O,  come  and  trust  Him  fully.  Cry  as  did 
the  disciples,  'Lord,  increase  our  faith.'" 

"But  I  don't  know  that  I  have  the  right  kind  of  faith." 

"The  thief  on  the  cross  did  not  say,  'if  I  had  a  Httle  more 
faith  I  would  ask  thee  to  remember  me  when  thou  comest  into 
thy  kingdom.'  He  offered  his  prayer  in  the  faith  he  had,  and 
Christ  accepted  him." 

"But  I  don't  feel  that  I  love  him  enough." 

"And  you  never  will.  To  all  eternity  you  never  will  love 
Him  as  much  as  He  deserves. 

"  'Had  I  ten  thousand,  thousand  tongues, 

Not  one  should  silent  be; 
Had  I  ten  thousand,  thousand  hearts, 
I'd  give  them  all  to  thee.'  " 

"When  temptation  comes  it  is  so  much  stronger  than  my 
resolution  that  I  yield.     What  shall  I  do?" 

"Look  to  Jesus.  He  was  'in  all  points  tempted  like  as  we 
are  yet  without  sin.'  Christ  can  give  us  the  strength  of  giants. 
Jesus  is  the  best  Master,  and  the  best  Friend  in  the  universe. 
Glory  be  to  His  name  forever." 

As  the  hour  of  twelve  drew  near,  Mr.  Moody  made  a  pas- 
sionate appeal  to  those  present  to  come  to  Jesus  before  the 
old  year  should  expire.  While  all  were  on  their  knees  en- 
gaged in  prayer,  Mr.  Sankey  broke  the  solemn  silence  by  sing- 


202  DWIGIIT  L.  MOODY. 

ing  in  tones  most  plaintive  and  impressive  :'Alniost  Persuad- 
ed.' A  magnetic  power  was  felt  in  every  heart  and  many  sup- 
pressed sobs  were  heard. 

The  clock  struck  twelve,  and  with  a  "Happy  New  Year" 
from  Mr.  IMoody  the  great  Centennial  year  had  begun. 

What  glorious  days  had  crowded  the  year  since  that  watch- 
night  service  in  Sheffield!  Edinburgh,  London,  Philadel- 
phia! Perhaps  the  names  of  a  hundred  thousand  converts 
had  been  enrolled  on  high;  the  spiritual  power  of  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  Christians  had  been  most  wonderfully  increased; 
their  lives  had  been  enriched  beyond  all  power  of  language  to 
express.  Marvelous  baptisms  of  the  Holy  Spirit  had  been 
poured  out  in  answer  to  prayer. 

The  writer  of  this  brief  sketch  of  the  life  and  work  of  Mr. 
Moody  had  been  privileged  to  spend  the  year  from  May,  1874, 
to  1875,  in  Edinburgh,  and  had  the  pleasure  of  attending  the 
last  service  Mr.  Sankey  held  in  the  great  Assembly  Hall. 

The  i)apcrs  there  were  giving  full  reports  of  the  great  meet- 
ings Moody  and  Sankey  were  holding  in  London.  But  the 
students  were  specially  interested  in  the  great  blessing  follow- 
ing the  labors  of  Drummond  and  other  delegates  from  the  new 
college. 

Returning  from  Scotland  and  called  to  a  pastorate  in  Phila- 
delphia, in  the  summer  of  1875,  a  wide  door  was  opened  for 
work  during  the  continuance  here  of  the  Moody  meetings.  I 
have  already  narrated  what  wonderful  success  everywhere  at- 
tended Drummond's  meeting  for  young  men.  From  April 
1874,  to  July  1875,  he  had  followed  up  the  work  of  the  evan- 
gelists and  was  by  their  side  in  London.  He  thought  he  had 
found  his  vocation,  but  in  a  conversation  with  a  very  dear 
friend  it  had  been  shown  him  "how  the  evangelist's  career 
was  apt  to  be  a  failure — perhaps  a  few  years  of  enthusiasm  and 
l)lessing,  then  carelessness,  no  study,  no  spiritual  fruits,  too 
often  a  sad  collai)se."  That  sent  him  back  to  his  last  year  at 
college.     Yet  Drunmiond  found  it  very  hard  to  resist  the 


THE  GREAT  REVIVAL  IN   PHILADELPHIA.  203 

appeal  which  Mr.  Moody  sent  him  to  come  to  Philadelphia; 
and  judging  from  the  previous  year's  labors  we  are  not  sur- 
prised at  the  urgency  of  that  appeal: 

Philadelphia,  Dec.  4,  1875. 
My  Dear  Drummond: — The  work  among  young  men  in 
this  country  is  growing  splendidly.  I  am  glad  I  went  to  Eng- 
land to  learn  how  to  reach  young  men.  Could  you  come  over 
and  help  us?  I  think  you  would  get  a  few  thousand  souls  on 
these  shores  if  you  should  come.  You  do  not  know  how  much 
I  want  you  with  me.  Come  if  you  possibly  can.  *  *  *  *  May 
God  bless  you  and  make  you  thrive  in  His  kingdom,  is  my 
prayer.     Yours  with  a  heart  full  of  love, 

D.  L.  Moody. 

It  were  idle  to  wonder  what  greater  blessing  had  come  to 
our  young  men  if  Drummond  had  accepted  the  invitation.  But 
it  was  not  to  be.  I  refer  to  it  here  only  to  recall  the  fact  that 
this  attachment  grew  stronger  to  the  very  last  between  these 
two  men,  who  were  living  almost  at  the  very  antipodes  of  so- 
cial and  intellectual  culture. 

DRUMMOND'S  LOYALTY. 

No  more  signal  proof  could  have  been  given  of  Drum- 
mond's  enthusiasm  for  the  gospel  and  loyalty  to  his  old  friends 
than  was  given  on  the  occasion  of  his  first  visit  to  America  in 
1879.  He  was  in  Boston,  with  but  live  days  to  spare  before 
sailing  for  home.  He  had  an  invitation  to  meet  Longfellow 
and  Holmes  at  dinner.  But  he  learned  that  eight  hundred 
miles  away  by  Lake  Erie  were  two  men  who  were  more  to  him 
than  philosopher  or  poet,  and  it  only  required  a  moment's 
thought  to  convince  him  that  a  visit  to  America  would  be 
much  more  than  incomplete  without  a  visit  to  Mr.  Moody  and 
Mr.  Sankey.     And  thus  he  writes  of  his  decision: 

"It  was  hard,  I  must  say,  to  give  up  Longfellow,  but  I  am  of 
those  who  think  that  the  world  is  not  dying  for  poets  so  much 


204  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

as  for  preachers.  I  set  off  at  once.  *  *  *  *  Neither  of  the 
men  seemed  the  least  changed.  There  they  were  before  me, 
the  same  men;  Mr.  Sankey  down  to  the  faultless  set  of  his 
black  neck  tie;  Mr.  Moody  to  the  chronic  crush  of  his  collar. 
I  can  scarcely  say  I  have  much  to  record  that  would  be  in 
itself  news.  For  my  own  part  I  am  glad  of  this.  We  do  not 
want  anything  new  in  revivals.  We  want  always  the  old 
factors — the  living  Spirit  of  God,  the  living  Word  of  God,  the 
old  Gospel.  We  want  crowds  coming  to  hear,  crowds  made 
up  of  the  old  elements,  perishing  men  and  women  finding  their 
way  to  prayer  meeting,  Bible  reading  and  inquiry  room.  These 
were  all  to  be  seen  in  Cleveland.  It  was  the  same  as  in  Eng- 
land and  Scotland.  I  was  especially  pleased  to  find  that  it 
was  the  same  as  regards  quietness.  I  had  expected  to  find 
revival  work  in  America  more  exciting;  but,  although  a  deep 
work  was  beginning,  everything  was  calm.  There  was  move- 
ment, but  no  agitation;  there  was  power  in  the  meetings,  but 
no  frenzy.  And  the  secret  of  that  probably  lay  here,  that  in 
the  speaker  himself  there  was  earnestness  but  no  bigotry,  and 
enthusiasm,  but  no  superstition." 

Like  many  other  pastors  who  for  weeks  gave  their  even- 
ings to  their  own  special  services,  I  gave  all  the  other  time  I 
could  spare  to  the  meetings  in  the  old  depot.  From  among 
the  many  remarkable  conversions  occurring  at  the  inquiry 
meetings  one  may  be  given  as  illustrative  of  the  deep  power  of 
conviction  which  followed  the  mighty  appeals  of  Mr.  Moody. 

It  was  at  the  close  of  a  noon-day  service  and  the  inquiry 
room  for  men  on  the  east  side  of  the  great  audience  room  was 
filled  with  some  two  hundred  anxious  men  and  Christian 
workers.  Prayer  had  just  been  offered  for  the  blessing  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  when  a  man  near  whom  I  was  standing  called 
out,  "Here  is  a  man  who  has  not  heard  a  prayer  before  for 
seven  years.  He  wants  somebody  to  pray  for  him."  I 
stepped  to  his  side  and  kneeled  to  pray  with  him.  In  a  con- 
versation following  I  learned  that  he  had  only  arrived  in  the 


THE  GREAT  REVIVAL  IN  PHILADELPHIA.         205 

city  from  Baltimore  at  eleven  o'clock  that  morning.  Passing 
the  building  he  was  attracted  by  the  singing  and  by  the  power 
of  the  Spirit  he  had  been  brought  under  deepest  conviction  of 
sin.  He  had  fallen  under  the  power  of  strong  drink  and  by 
reason  of  his  bad  habits  had  lost  situation,  reputation,  money 
and  friends.  But  he  accepted  at  once,  and  with  a  glad  heart 
the  forgiveness  of  sins  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord,  united 
with  the  church  of  which  I  then  was  pastor,  and  continues 
there  till  this  day,  a  most  consistent,  exemplary  and  honored 
member. 

SOME  SPECIAL  MATTERS 

of  great  interest  may  here  be  summarized  in  closing  this 
sketch  of  the  great  revival  in  Philadelphia. 

The  expenses  of  this  remarkable  and  most  blessed  series  of 
meetings  was  upwards  of  forty  thousand  dollars.  This  was 
the  entire  expense  account,  including  the  fitting  up  of  the  old 
depot,  the  enormous  amount  of  advertising  and  the  running 
cost  of  management.  Not  one  dollar  of  this  went  to  either 
Mr.  Moody  or  Mr.  Sankey,  nor  would  Mr.  Moody  allow  any 
collections  to  be  taken  up  at  any  of  the  meetings.  This  re- 
quired that  the  entire  amount  should  be  raised  by  private  sub- 
scription, and  that  this  was  accomplished  speaks  volumes  of 
praise  for  that  business  committee  of  which  Mr.  George  H. 
Stuart  was  chairman,  and  Mr.  John  R.  Whitney  was  the  treas- 
urer. 

The  most  important,  perhaps,  of  all  special  meetings  held 
were  those  of  the  Christian  Convention,  called  to  meet  on 
January  19th  and  20th.  This  convention  was  attended  by 
over  twenty-five  hundred  ministers  and  laymen.  Many  of 
these  reported  very  precious  revivals  following  their  return  to 
their  various  fields  of  labor.  Special  blessings  also  attended 
the  fifteen  daily  prayer  meetings  that  ran  parallel  with  the 
meetings  in  the  old  depot  and  thus  the  people  in  all  sections  of 
the  city  were  kept  in  closest  touch  with  the  central  meetings. 


2o6  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

To  say  that  ten  thousand  persons  were  added  to  the 
churches  in  the  city  and  the  vicinity  as  the  direct  or  indirect  re- 
sults of  these  meetings,  would  not  seem  an  exaggeration.  Sev- 
enteen thousand  copies  of  a  little  book  for  inquirers  were  sent 
out  to  those  whose  names  had  been  given  as  such. 

Very  full  reports  of  the  meetings  and  sermons  were  pub- 
lished in  all  the  secular  and  religious  papers  and  extensive  ac- 
counts were  sent  throughout  all  the  country  by  the  Associated 
Press.  The  whole  country  was  roused,  and  everywhere  the 
churches  were  filled  with  great  expectations.  New  zeal  was 
awakened,  and  most  earnest  prayers  were  daily  offered  that 
our  whole  land  might  be  blessed  as  wonderfully  as  England, 
Ireland  and  Scotland  had  been. 

These  meetings  in  Philadelphia,  which  closed  on  Friday 
evening,  February  4th,  with  an  immense  throng  in  the  old 
depot,  were  almost  the  beginning  of  that  wider  reputation  and 
most  glorious  success  which  was  to  follow  Mr.  Moody  for  al- 
most twenty-five  years  more  as  an  evangelist  throughout  all 
the  greater  cities  of  our  own  land  and  to  cease  not  till  he  had 
compassed  the  globe  and  finished  his  work  in  that  brief,  final 
campaign  in  Kansas  City,  in  November,  1899. 

The  scope  of  this  volume  will  only  allow  of  the  slightest 
sketch  of  Mr.  Moody's  evangelistic  labors  for  another  year; 
and  then  we  will  invite  your  attention  to  the  great  educational 
work  which  he  inaugurated  at  Northfield  and  Mt.  Hermon — 
which  will  abide  as  the  most  lasting  memorial  of  his  tireless 
energy  and  boundless  zeal  in  the  cause  of  Christian  education. 
The  Chicago  Bible  Institute  has  been  laid  on  quite  a  differ- 
ent foundation  and  will  require  separate  treatment. 

On  leaving  Philadelphia,  two  days,  February  5th  and  6th, 
were  spent  at  Princeton,  N.  J.,  where  a  great  revival  had  brok- 
en out  during  the  week  of  prayer  for  colleges.  The  stay  of 
Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  over  the  Sabbath  was  greatly 
blessed,  both  to  the  town  and  to  the  college.  The  students 
continued  to  carry  on  their  meetings  for  nearly  a  month,  and 


THE  GREAT  REVIVAL  IN   PHILADELPHIA.  207 

largely  through  their  individual  efforts  they  resulted  glorious- 
ly in  the  conversion  of  upwards  of  one  hundred  of  their  fellow 
collegians. 

Very  careful  arrangements  had  been  made  for  their  visit  of 

TWO  MONTHS  IN  NEW  YORK. 

Mr.  Moody  received  the  most  hearty  co-operation  of  the 
ministers  of  the  evangelical  churches.  A  choir  of  nearly  800 
voices  and  a  willing  band  of  several  hundred  Christian  work- 
ers were  ready  to  take  up  their  work  at  the  very  first  meeting. 

An  immense  building  on  Madison  avenue  had  been  secured 
and  partitions  had  been  put  up  dividing  it  into  two  large  audi- 
ence rooms,  with  smaller  ones  for  the  inquiry  meetings.  In 
spite  of  the  fact  that  the  hall  would  thus  accommodate  10,000 
people,  thousands  could  not  get  in  and  several  overflow  meet- 
ings were  also  organized.  The  convention  for  ministers'  and 
laymen,  which  had  become  a  fixed  part  of  every  mission  of 
any  duration  was  held  with  great  enthusiasm  and  the  last 
meeting  for  converts  was  atended  by  3500  persons  to  hear 
his  parting  address. 

Their  campaign  in  Brooklyn,  in  October,  before  they  vis- 
ited Philadelphia,  which  had  added  nearly  2000  to  the 
churches,  had  in  part  prepared  the  way  for  this  larger  blessing 
in  New  York. 

Mr.  Sankey,  after  these  meetings  ended,  turned  his  face 
homeward  to  Newcastle,  Pa.,  for  a  time,  while  Mr.  IMoody 
visited  several  cities  in  the  south,  returning  to  Chicago  after 
an  absence  of  three  years,  by  way  of  St.  Louis.  He  found  a 
splendid  new  church,  costing  nearly  $90,000,  had  arisen  on 
the  site  of  that  rough  but  commodious  after-fire  tabernacle. 
Thirty  thousand  dollars  of  the  final  indebtedness  on  this 
church  had  been  paid  off  out  of  the  royalty  fvmd  from  the 
sale  of  the  Moody  and  Sankey  hymn  books,  which  amount 
had  been  sent  to  Mr.  George  H.  Stuart  from  London. 

After  assisting  at  the  dedication  of  this  spacious,  but  plain- 


2o8  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

ly  finished  and  furnished  church,  Mr.  Moody  returned  to 
Northfield.  A  month  later  and  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey 
were 

BACK  IN  CHICAGO 

ready  to  begin,  October  ist,  a  great  and  very  successful  revi- 
val. A  huge  tabernacle  seating  8000  people,  and  costing 
$20,000  had  been  erected;  and,  with  the  heartiest  welcome 
they  had  ever  received,  with  an  "All  hail,"  and  "God  bless  you" 
rising  from  ten  thousand  voices,  they  began  their  work.  In 
less  than  five  years  Chicago  had  recovered  from  the  losses  of 
the  great  conflagration  and  was  spreading  out  on  every  side. 
And  now  upon  the  new  Chicago  God  w^as  pleased  to  pour  out 
a  Pentecostal  baptism  of  the  Holy  Spirit  and  nearly  five  thous- 
and souls  swelled  the  roll  of  the  blessings  that  filled  their 
hearts  with  boundless  gratitude  and  joy  at  the  watch  night 
service  of  1876. 

Edinburgh,  London,  Philadelphia,  Chicago!!  Who  can  tell 
the  story?  What  mortal  voices  lift  the  anthems  of  praise? 
Only  the  Hallelujah  chorus  as  sung  by  the  redeemed  before 
the  throne  can  worthily  magnify  the  name  of  God,  who  at  the 
hands  of  these  humble  servants  and  in  the  midst  of  all  the  peo- 
ple had  wrought  such  wonders  of  salvation.  To  Him  be  all 
the  glory  forever. 


Northfield  Seminary  Life. 

By  Mrs.  A.  W.  Yale  (One  of  the  girls.) 

R.  MOODY  happened  one  day  to  be  driving  the 
steep  road  which  leads  up  and  over  one  of  the 
mountains  or  hills  which  overlook  Northfield. 
At  the  summit  there  suddenly  came  into  view 
one  of  those  lonely  farmhouses  so  often  found 
on  unfrequented  roads,  and  here  Mr.  Moody  found,  as  has 
frequently  been  related,  young  girls  engaged  in  the  monot- 
onous occupation  of  making  baskets.  It  was  by  no  means 
an  unusual  sight,  especially  in  New  England,  but  it  attracted 
Mr.  Moody's  attention,  and  the  thought  at  once  flashed  into 
his  mind,  "Those  girls  have  as  much  right  to  an  education 
as  any  one  else,  but  how  can  they  get  it?" 
As  a  result  of  this  mental  question,  a  number  of  large,  hand- 


View  of  Northfield  Seminary. 


14 


2IO 


DWIGIIT  L.  MOODY. 


some  buildings  of  brick  or  stone  stand  upon  a  smooth  green 
campus  which  slopes  gently  down  to  the  Connecticut. 
Northfield  Seminary,  with  its  well-equipped  dormitories, 
gymnasium,  library  and  recitation  halls,  its  complete  curricu- 
lum, and  its  corps  of  competent  teachers,  is  Mr.  Moody's  an- 
swer to  his  own  problem  of  educating  not  three  girls  but 
over  three  hundred  yearly. 

The  seminary  as  it  stands  to-day  is  the  growth  of  a  number 


Marquand  Hall. 

of  years,  and  had  its  humble  beginning  in  the  north  wing  of 
Mr.  Moody's  own  house  which  he  fitted  up  for  the  accommo- 
dation of  a  few  girls.  A  small  brick  recitation  hall  was  the 
next  acquisition,  and  to  meet  the  growing  needs  of  the  school 
a  large  farmhouse  was  purcliased  for  a  dormitory,  and  chris- 
tened Bonar  Hall,  in  honor  of  Mr.  Moody's  personal  friend, 
Dr.  Andrew  Bonar,  of  Scotland.  Gourd-like,  the  school 
continued  to  grow,  and  East  Hall  was  erected,  having  ac- 
commodations for  sixty.  Stone  Hall  was  the  next  addition 
to  the  group,  and  was  paid  for  by  the  royalties  from  the  gos- 


NORTHFIELD  SEMINARY  LIFE.  211 

pel  hymn  books.  "Mr.  Sankey  sang  that  building  up,"  Mr. 
Moody  was  wont  to  observe  as  he  pointed  to  it. 

The  attention  of  the  trustees  of  the  Marquand  estate  was 
attracted  by  the  institution,  and  Marquand  Hall,  a  large 
brick  dormitory,  with  accommodations  for  eighty,  is  a  tangi- 
ble evidence  of  their  interest  in  Mr.  Moody's  educational 
work. 

The  old  brick  recitation  hall  had  been  superseded  by  Stone 


Talcott  Library. 

Hall  and  the  former  sold  as  a  dwelling  house.  Urged  by  the 
necessity  for  more  dormitory  room,  it  was  re-purchased,  and 
in  its  enlarged  and  improved  state,  again  took  its  place  among 
the  seminary  buildings,  as  the  ''Revell."  This  shows  the 
rapid  growth  of  the  school,  for  but  a  short  time  previous,  Mr. 
David  M.  Weston  had  given  to  the  seminary  the  dormitory 
which  bears  his  name. 


212  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

A  growing  need  had  been  felt  of  a  liljrary,  and  this  was 
met  by  a  generous  friend  of  the  institution,  Mr.  James  Tal- 
cott,  of  New  York.  Talcott  Library,  a  small  building  in  the 
Moorish  style  of  architecture,  not  only  well  serves  the  pur- 
pose for  which  it  was  intended,  but  is  an  ornament  to  the 
campus.  Skinner  Gymnasium  was  the  latest  gift  to  North- 
field  Seminary,  and  completes  the  number,  since  the  great 


Skinner  Gvninasiuin. 


Auditorium  is  only  used  during  the  summer  conferences, 
and  cannot  be  strictly  classed  as  a  seminary  building. 

Such  was  the  evolution  of  a  school,  the  plan  of  which  many 
considered  impracticable  and  Quixotic,  and  whose  failure  was 
confidently  predicted,  especially  as  the  yearly  fee  was  placed 
at  such  a  low  figure,  one  hundred  dollars,  that  each  student 
£ost  the  institution  sixty  dollars  per  annum  more  than  she 
paid.     But  the  corner  stone  upon  which  the  seminary  rested 


NORTHFIELD  SEMINARY  LIFE. 


213 


was  the  scriptural  promise,  chosen  for  a  motto,  "1  the  Lord 
do  keep  it;  I  will  water  it  every  moment,  lest  any  hurt  it,  I 
will  keep  it  night  and  day." 

THE  CURRICULUM. 

Mr.  Moody  left  the  arrangement  of  the  curriculum  to  more 
experienced  heads  than  his  own,  but  upon  one  point  he  was 
firm,  that  the  Bible  should  occupy  a  prominent  place  in  the 
course  of  study,  for  Northfield  Seminary  was  to  be  essentially 


Model  of  Solomon's  Temple  at  Northfield. 

a  Christian  institution.  So  the  scriptures  are  studied  in  no 
desultory,  haphazard  fashion,  but  thoroughly  and  systemati- 
cally. Examinations  are  held  in  Bible  the  same  as  in -any 
other  subject,  and  the  "pr^p."  who  in  her  first  days  at  the 
seminary  wandered  aimlessly  through  the  New  Testament  in 
search  of  Thessalonians,  is  a  good  Bible  student  by  the  time 
she  has  reached  her  senior  year. 

As  for  other  studies,  three  excellent  courses  are  placed  at 
th^  option  of  the  student,  namely,  the  English,  general  and 


214  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

college  preparatory.  The  first  is  a  scientific  course,  omitting 
Latin  and  Greek,  and  having  modern  languages  as  electives. 

The  second  includes  Latin,  a  few  of  the  sciences,  with 
modern  languages,  while  the  third,  as  its  name  would  imply, 
prepares  the  pupil  to  enter  any  college. 

Household  Science  was  introduced  some  time  ago  and  has 
proved  one  of  the  most  popular  departments.  In  a  room 
especially  fitted  up  for  the  purpose,  and  provided  with  every 
convenience,  the  girls  receive  instruction  in  such  practical 
subjects  as  cooking,  sewing,  washing,  ironing  and  the  general 
care  of  a  house.  '"Domestic  Science"  was  the  name  by 
which  the  course  was  originally  known,  but  it  was  found 
necessary  to  change  this,  since  many,  inferring  that  its  pur- 
pose was  to  train  domestics,  sent  to  the  seminary  for  cooks 
and  chambermaids. 

In  purpose  and  spirit,  Northfield  Seminary  and  Mt.  Hol- 
yoke  strongly  resemble  one  another,  but  even  before  the  lat- 
ter became  a  college  the  requirements  were  much  higher  than 
those  for  Northfield.  Since  Mt.  Holyoke  received  its  char- 
ter as  a  college,  and  discontinued  the  seminary  course,  its 
standard  is  as  high  as  that  of  any  other  college,  and  the 
Northfield  graduate  who  completes  the  college  preparatory 
course,  is  well  prepared  to  enter  the  freshman  year  of  Mt. 
Holyoke  College. 

THE  TOWN  OF  NORTHFIELD. 

Northfield  is  an  ideal  town  for  the  location  of  a  school,  and 
cannot  fail  to  impress  one  who  visits  it  for  the  first  time.  It 
is  one  of  those  quaint  New  England  villages,  whose  broad, 
long  street  is  shaded  by  a  double  row  of  venerable  elms  and 
maples,  and  many  of  whose  residences  are  built  with  a  firm- 
ness and  stability  which  suggests  protection  from  marauding 
Indians.  A  slight  acquaintance  with  the  history  of  the  town 
will  show  that  such  precaution  was  not  unnecessary  in  the 
colonial  days,  for  Northfield  was  settled  in  the  times  when 


Main  Street,  looking  South. 


Main  Street,  looking  North. 


2l6 


DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 


men  worked  in  the  fields  with  their  guns  at  their  side,  and  the 
villages  were  encircled  by  a  stockade  for  the  sake  of  safety. 

The  Northfield  of  the  past  is  scarcely  less  interesting  than 
that  of  the  present,  and  the  antiquarian  will  find  his  researches 
amply  repaid.  The  early  settlers  chose  the  location  of  the 
town  wisely,  for  they  built  their  homes  on  a  long  blufif,  over- 
looking the  broad,  fertile  meadows,  beyond  which  wound  the 


Main  Street;  looking  South  from  Belden  Rock. 

Connecticut,  while  upon  the  east  a  low  ridge  of  mountains 
gave  protection  from  sharp  easterly  winds.  It  was  at  the 
extreme  northern  end  of  the  town  that  land  was  purchased 
for  Northfield  Seminary,  and  the  buildings  stand  upon  a  hill- 
side which  gradually  slopes  down  into  the  meadow  land,  past 
which  the  Connecticut  flows. 

The  new  pupil,  coming  for  the  first  time  to  Northfield,  gets 
her  earliest  glimpse  of  her  future  Alma  Mater  from  the  stage 


Old  Field  House. 


An  Old   Northfield    Residence. 


2l8 


DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 


as  it  rattles  along  the  road  beside  the  river.  The  little  town 
of  South  Vernon,  scarcely  more  than  a  railroad  junction,  is 
soon  left  behind,  and  just  beyond  its  limits,  Northfield  comes 
into  view,  across  the  river.  It  does  not  nestle,  like  the  con- 
ventional village  of  fiction,  but  lies  stretched  out  at  full  length 
along  the  blufif. 

The  seminary  buildings    at    once    attract    the    eye — Mar- 
(juand  Hall,  with  its  mediaeval-like  tower;  East  Hall,  in  a 


Mr.  Moody's  Home,  from  the  North. 

more  severe  style  of  architecture;  Skinner  Gymnasium,  with 
its  long  windows;  Weston  Hall,  plain  and  unpretentious, 
further  back  on  the  hillside;  Stone  Hall  and  Talcott  Library, 
whose  soft  grey  contrasts  with  the  dull  red  of  the  brick  build- 
ings; Betsy  Moody  Cottage,  designed  especially  for  the  sick, 
and  for  those  needing  rest,  while  farthest  back  of  all  rise  the 
towers  of  the  great  Auditorium.  Close  adjoining  the  smooth 
velvety  campus,  one  can  distinguish  a  pleasant  home-like 
house,  painted  the  conventional  white,  with  green  blinds,  and 


Rear  of  Marquand  Hall. 


View  from  Tower  of  Auditorium. 


220  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

this  is  the  residence  of  Dwight  L.  Moody.  Other  features  ol 
the  town  catch  the  eye ;  the  spire  of  the  Congregational 
Church,  and  at  some  distance  further  down  two  other  spires, 
the  gilded  cross  surmounting  one  unmistakably  indicating  a 
Catholic  church.  Oriental  travelers  are  wont  to  describe  the 
beauties  of  Constantinople  as  seen  from  a  distance,  the  white 


Main  Street,  East  Northlield. 

minarets  and  domes  gleaming  through  the  shining  green  of 
the  trees,  but  tell  us  that  once  within  the  city  the  beauty  van- 
ishes and  all  the  fancied  charms  are  dispelled  by  the  unclean 
streets  and  imsavory  odors. 

Northficld  is  not  a  Constantinople,  for  it  is  no  less  a  pleas- 
ure to  walk  through  its  broad,  well-shaded  streets  than  to 
view  it  from  a  distance,  and  the  mind  of  the  Northfield  alum- 
na often  turns  back  to  the  davs  when  she  rambled  in  Bonar 


Old  Bridge  Across  Connecticut  River. 


222  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

Glen,  with  the  dead  leaves  rustling  under  her  feet,  or  rowed 
over  the  clear  waters  of  Minnehaha  Lake. 

SCHOOL  LIFE. 

As  for  the  school  life  of  Northfield  it  differs  somewhat  from 
that  of  an  ordinary  boarding  school.  The  students  are  not 
the  daughters  of  wealthy  parents  sent  to  "finish"  their  edu- 
cation, and  whose  idea  of  boarding  school  is  to  have  a  lively 
time  with  as  little  study  as  is  consistent  with  receiving  their 
diploma.  The  girls  who  come  to  Northfield  arc  there  to 
\vork,  and  are  anxious,  especially  those  who  have  been  denied 
early  advantages,  to  make  the  most  of  their  time. 

Perhaps  it  may  seem  that  girhsh  pranks  are  considered  a 
little  too  seriously,  but  when  it  is  remembered  that  a  large 
number  of  applications  are  refused  simply  for  lack  of  room, 
it  will  be  seen  to  be  no  more  than  simple  justice  that  careless, 
idle  girls  be  asked  to  withdraw  in  favor  of  those  really  hun- 
gering for  an  education. 

The  spirit  of  the  school  is  plainly  to  be  felt  among  the  stu- 
dents for  girls  are  respected  and  loved  not  for  their  social 
position  nor  for  their  fathers'  means,  but  for  what  they  them- 
selves are.  The  exclusive  cliques,  so  common  in  boarding 
schools,  do  not  flourish  here,  and  in  their  place  is  a  Christ- 
like spirit  of  unselfishness  and  consideration  for  others. 

MR.  MOODY'S  LOVE  OF  AIUSIC. 

Music  was  one  of  Mr.  Moody's  hobbies,  and  the  singing  of 
Northfield  Seminary  and  Mt.  Hermon  School  was  the  pride 
of  his  heart.  At  the  morning  chapel  exercises  of  the  former, 
upon  one  occasion,  he  gave  out  a  hymn,  and  was  apparently 
dissatisfied  with  the  stumbling  manner  in  which  it  was  sung. 
He  turned  to  the  pianist  in  surprise. 

"What's  the  matter?"  he  asked.  "Don't  the  girls  know 
that  hymn?" 

"The  first  four  lines  are  a  bass  solo,"  replied  the  accompan- 
ist, meekly. 


The  Moody  Residence. 


Residence  of  A.  P.  Fitt,  Mr.  Moody'  Son-in-h 


224  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

At  another  time,  when  both  schools  were  assembled  in  the 
village  church  for  the  Sunday  morning  service,  he  suggested 
that  they  "sing  while  the  friends  were  gathering,"  and  select- 
ed the  gospel  hymn  known  as  "Have  courage  my  boy,  to  say 
'No.'"     The  refrain  was, 

"Have  courage,  my  boy, 

Have  courage,  my  boy. 

Have  courage  my  boy,  to  say  *No.'  " 

"That's  very  good,"  was  his  comment  at  the  conclusion  of 
the  first  verse,  "But  it's  just  as  necessary  for  a  girl  to  know- 
how  to  say  'No'  as  a  boy,  so  I  want  all  you  young  men  from 
Hermon  to  sing  that  chorus  again,  and  sing,  "Have  courage 
my  girl,  to  say  'No.'  " 

The  hymn  in  its  improved  form,  was  accordingly  sung,  and 
although  the  sentiment  was,  no  doubt,  an  excellent  one,  the 
spectacle  of  three  hundred  young  men  earnestly  exhorting 
their  girls  to  say  "No"  was  too  much  for  the  risibles  of  the 
congregation. 

At  the  morning  chapel  exercises  of  the  seminary,  he  one 
day  selected  a  hymn  whose  chorus  repeated  again  and  again, 
"We'll  all  be  ready  when  the  bridegroom  comes."  The  first 
time  the  hymn  was  sung  through  with  perfect  gravity,  but 
the  repetition  was  too  much  for  the  three  hundred  girls  thus 
cheerfully  expressing  their  readiness  for  the  bridegroom,  and 
a  ripple  ran  over  the  assembly. 

"I  guess  we'll  try  another,"  said  Mr.  Moody,  with  a  smile. 

INCIDENTS  OF  MORNING  WORSHIP. 

Many  interesting  incidents  occurred  at  the  morning  wor- 
ship, and  it  frequently  happened  that  some  visitors  addressed 
the  school.  A  lady  of  extreme  corpulence  was  asked  to  lead 
the  service  one  morning,  and  she  accordingly  opened  the 
scriptures  and  began,  "Have  merthy  upon  me,  O  Lord,  for 
man  would  thwaller  me  up."  A  smile,  rapidly  contagious, 
spread  over  the  school,  and  the  thought  was  in  more  than 


Mr.   Moody's  Donkey. 


Marquand  Hall,  {rom  Residence  of  D.  L.  Moody. 


226  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

one  mind  that  the  man  who  did  the  "thwallering"  would  need 
the  "merthy." 

From  time  to  time  distinguished  visitors  came  to  the  sem- 
inary, among  whom  was  the  late  Professor  Drummond,  a 
warm  personal  friend  of  Mr.  Moody's.  He  began  his  re- 
marks with,  "I  suppose  a  few  of  you  young  ladies  are  feeling 
homesick."     (It  was  at  the  beginning  of  the  fall  term.) 

"No,  no,"  interrupted  Mr.  Moody  quickly,  "we  don't  ever 
have  homesick  girls  here." 

The  visit  of  Dr.  James  Stalker,  of  Scotland,  was  looked  for- 
ward to  with  much  interest,  and  at  Mr.  Moody's  request  the 
school  practiced  metrical  psalms,  "For  the  Scotch  are  very 
fond  of  psalms,"  he  assured  us.  Upon  the  eventful  occasion 
of  the  visit,  the  psalms  were  sung  and  their  rendering  warmly 
praised  by  Dr.  Stalker. 

"But,"  he  added,  "over  in  Scotland  I  hear  psalms,  psalms 
and  nothing  but  psalms  and  now  that  I  have  come  over  here, 
I  want  to  hear  something  else  beside  them.  Sing  some  real 
good  gospel  hymns  for  me,  please." 

It  was  at  Mr.  Moody's  suggestion  that  the  custom  of  an 
annual  sacred  concert  was  established.  This  name,  unfor- 
tunately associated  with  questionable  entertainments  in  the 
low-class  theatres,  meant  in  this  case  a  concert  the  program 
of  which  was  entirely  composed  of  sacred  music.  A  number  of 
Mr.  Moody's  favorite  gospel  hymns  were  sung,  interspersed 
with  more  difficult  selections  by  the  choirs  of  both  schools. 

Mr.  Moody,  as  has  already  been  said,  was  fond  of  music, 
although  possessing  no  ear  whatever  for  it,  and  unable  to 
carry  the  simplest  tune.  A  song  recital  was  given  in  Stone 
Hall  one  evening  by  a  friend  of  the  school,  a  young  lady  with 
an  excellent  contralto  voice.  After  a  number  of  songs  Mr. 
Moody  called  for  more,  and  suggested  that  she  sing  a  favorite 
hymn  of  his,  "Then  shall  my  heart  keep  singing."  The  singer 
was  tired,  and  demurred  at  first,  but  finally  consented  on  the 
condition  that  he  sine:  it  with  her. 


Main  Street,   East   Northficld,  looking  North. 


Old  East  Northfiel'd  P.  O. 


i28  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

''Very  well,"  he  replied  with  alacrity,  and  at  once  joined  her 
upon  the  platform.  "You  must  bow  to  the  audience,"  she 
prompted,  and  he  accordingly  made  a  low  bow.  The  pianist 
began  the  hymn,  and  they  sang  it  together,  the  clear  contral- 
to notes  and  Mr.  Moody's  low  mumbled  monotone  mingling 
discordantly.  When  the  chorus  was  reached  the  young  lady 
could  no  longer  control  herself,  but  broke  down  completely 
with  laughter,  while  Mr.  Moody  continued  bravely  to  the  end. 

THE  GRADUATE  OF  NORTHFIELD 

has  many  a  pleasant  recollection  of  her  school-days,  which 
will  not  easily  slip  from  the  memory.  The  walks  on  the  crisp 
October  afternoons  when  the  air  was  sharp  and  bracing,  and 
the  dead  leaves  rustled  beneath  the  feet,  the  rambles  in  spring 
time,  in  search  of  the  delicate  trailing  arbutus,  the  skating  on 
Minnehaha  Lake,  and  the  coasting  on  the  smooth  "crust" 
from  Round  Top  nearly  to  the  river. 

Pauchaug  Hill,  once  the  scene  of  Indian  ambuscades,  as  a 
granite  shaft  bears  witness,  is  a  veritable  coasters'  paradise,  a 
paradise  whose  gates  are  barred  to  the  seminary  student,  be- 
cause the  hill,  with  its  sharp  curves,  has  been  the  scene  of 
many  an  accident. 

Other  recollections  come  to  mind,  for  Northficld  school 
davs  arc  inseparably  associated  with  Mr.  Moody.  He  was  a  fa- 
miliar sight  as  he  drove  about  in  his  buggy,  Lion,  the  mastifif, 
trotting  behind.  Sometimes  he  was  alone,  at  other  times  one 
of  his  grandchildren  accompanied  him.  for  never  was  there  a 
more  devoted  grandfather  than  he.  His  son  bore  loving  tes- 
timony to  his  character  as  a  father,  at  the  funeral  service, 
while  his  tender  affection  for  his  aged  mother,  who  passed 
away  in  1896,  could  not  but  impress  those  who  knew  him. 

He  officiated  at  the  baptism  of  his  daughter's  child,  little 
Emma  Moody  Fitt,  and  those  who  were  present  enjoy-ed  the 
informality  of  the  occasion.  As  the  service  began,  the  baby's 
face  puckered  ominously,  and  a  wail  seemed  imminent. 


1-|ii;«9^.,'-^^^'«ft»  ^ 


Round  Top. 


Minnehaha  Lake. 
(Wanamaker  Lake) 


230  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

"Never  mind  if  she  does  cry,"  said  Mr.  Moody  to  his  daugh- 
ter, reassuringly,  "we've  all  heard  a  baby  cry  before  now." 

When  the  service  was  over  he  returned  the  child  to  its 
mother's  arms,  and  turned  to  the  congregation  with  a  beam- 
ing smile.  "She's  been  a  real  good  baby,  hasn't  she?"  he 
asked  proudly. 

Just  before  his  death,  he  alluded  to  the  two    little    grand- 


View  from  Round  Top. 

children  who  had  died.     "I  have  been  within  the  gates,"  he 
said;  "and  seen  the  children,  Irene  and  Dwight." 

The  seminary  student  who  was  in  trouble  or  perplexity,  in- 
variably found  in  Mr.  Moody 

A  SYMPATHIZING  FRIEND 

ready  with  practical,  common  sense  advice.     One  young  girl 
came  to  him  in  great  anxiety.      "Mr.  Moody,"  she  said,  "1  be- 


A  Northfield  Residence. 


Hotel  Northfield. 


232  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

lieve  I'm  backsliding,  for  when  I  go  to  bed  at  night,  very  often 
I  don't  feel  in  the  least  like  praying,  but  would  rather  go  right 
to  sleep.  Do  you  think  there  is  something  the  matter  with 
me  spiritually?"  "My  dear  young  lady,"  replied  Mr.  Moody, 
'"it  shows  that  you  are  working  hard,  and  are  simply  tired  and 
sleepy  when  night  comes.  Don't  worry  about  your  spiritual 
state  when  it's  just  bodily  fatigue." 

The  tired  body  of  the  great  evangelist  has  been  laid  to  rest 
under  the  pines  on  Round  Top.  "I  hope  I  shall  be  on  Round 
Top  when  the  L.ord  comes  again,"  he  had  often  said,  and  it 
was  therefore  chosen  as  his  burial  place. 

Standing  beside  his  grave  one  can  look  upon  the  buildings 
of  Northfield  Seminary,  and  see  the  students  passing  to  and 
fro,  hundreds  of  girls,  who  but  for  his  tireless  energy  and 
strong  faith  would  never  have  received  the  priceless  boon  of 
an  education. 

A  mile  to  the  south,  the  Hotel  Northfield  is  plainly  visible, 
where  each  winter  a  Christian  Training  School  prepares  one 
hundred  young  women  to  engage  in  active  Christian  work. 

Over  to  the  southwest,  the  eye  can  distinguish  Mt.  Hermon 
School,  where  over  three  hundred  earnest  young  men  are  be- 
ing educated,  who  otherwise  would  never  have  known  this 
privilege. 

Mr.  Moody  needs  no  monument  of  marble  or  granite,  for 
these  schools  and  the  countless  young  men  and  women  who 
have  gone  out  from  them  to  lead  lives  of  service  for  the  Mas- 
ter, are  a  memorial  which  will  endure  forever. 

"Blessed  are  the  dead  who  die  in  the  Lord  from  henceforth; 
Yea,  saith  the  Spirit,  that  they  may  rest  from  their  labors;  and 
their  works  do  follow  them." 


The  Northfield  Conference. 

ORTHFIELD  and  the  Summer  Conference!  What 
memories  these  words  kindle,  as  we  utter  them; 
how  many  hearts  and  in  what  different  parts  of 
the  earth,  near  and  remote,  throb  with  quicker 
pulses  as  they  recall  those  happy,  holy  days  at 
Northfield.     Those    vacation  experiences  amid  the  foot-hills 


View  oi   Northtield. 

(Showing:  Old  Congregational  Church  where 

the  first  conference  was  held) 


of  New  England  have  marked  a  transition  line  in  the  spiritual 
experience  and  fruitfulness  of  many  Christian  lives.  There 
unnumbered  children  of  God  have  crossed  the  Jordan  and 
entered  upon  a  higher,  deeper  and  more  potent  career  of  Ufe 
and  usefulness.     Northfield  is  to  them  the  synonym  of  a 


234 


DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 


blessed  surrender  and  trust  which  were  followed  by  a  more 
blessed  rest,  joy  and  victory,  as  they  from  thenceforth  began 
to  reign  in  life,  by  Jesus  Christ,  through  the  abundance  of 
grace  and  the  gift  of  righteousness.  Northfield  has  been  to 
many  of  the  Master's  consecrated  servants  not  merely  a 
Bethel  where  their  Lord,  though  not  fully  recognized,  had  yet 
received  their  selfish  vows,  but  more  a  Penuel,  where  they  met 
Him  face  to  face  and  yielded  their  all  in  glad  and  utter  surren- 


Meeting  upon  Round  Top. 
der,  to  receive  in  return  a  new  name  and  a  new  nature,  to  fine 
themselves  by  His  grace  henceforth  princes,  having  power 
with  God  and  men.  We  may  gather  in  soul-stirring  confer- 
ence at  Northfield  again  for  many  a  coming  year,  but  the  all- 
dominating  personality  of  the  conference  founder  and  long- 
time leader,  moulding  and  welding  into  a  unit  of  praise  and 
purpose  the  vast  gatherings  in  the  great  auditorium  will  not  be 
visible. 

Neither  shall  we  be  permitted  again  as  we  gather  on  Round 


Sou  h  Vernon   Station. 


Store  at  South  Vernon. 


236 


DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 


Top  at  setting  of  the  sun  to  draw  close  about  him  as  he  ex- 
horts, and  pleads  with  us  to  become  more  like  the  Christ,  our 
Lord,  and  to  yield  our  whole  being  to  the  doing  of  His  will  in 
service  or  in  sacrifice.  But  in  a  very  profound  spiritual 
sense,  Moody  will  be  at  Northfield  still,  to  the  eye  of  memory, 
and  to  the  spiritual  apprehension  an  undying  influence  and  a 
living  factor  ever.     Tlie  sweet  memories  of  those  summer 


Congregational  Church. 
days  of  privilege,  peace  and  power  are  fragrant  and  lasting, 
like  holy  incense  are  more  than  sacred  memories;  they  are 
living  seeds  bringing  forth  their  harvest,  thirty,  sixty,  an  hun- 
dred fold  in  our  imperfect  but  purpose-filled  lives. 

The  personality  of  the  great  leader  of  assemblies  has  van- 
ished, but  the  institutions  which  he  founded  at  Northfield  and 
Chicago  will  live  on,  and  among  those  institutions  the  sum- 
mer conferences  arc  not  the  least  important.     These  gather- 


The  Auditorium. 


Meeting  of  August  Conference  in  Auditorium. 


2^8 


DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 


ings  for  the  quickening  of  the  spiritual  life  of  the  believer,  and 
for  the  increase  of  his  power  and  skill  in  Christan  work  will 
live  and  grow  in  usefulness  as  the  years  go  by. 

It  is  deeply  interesting  to  study  the  origin  of  great  modern 
movements  in  the  kingdom  of  Christ  on  earth.  How  spring 
such  movements  into  life?  Not  from  explicit  command  sud- 
denly flashing  from  the  page  of  inspiration;  but  God  first  puts 
a  deep  sense  of  need  in  awakened  souls;  this  need  finds  expres- 


Residcncc  of  Dr.   A.  T.   Picrson. 


sion  in  an  earnest  cry,  which  is  heard  at  God's  throne,  and  by 
some  attentive  and  obedient  ear  on  earth.  Then  the  Holy 
SjMrit  stirs  within  that  listener's  heart  the  j^urposc  to  meet  the 
need  and  the  consecrated  man  goes  forth  in  the  Holy  Spirit's 
strength  to  execute.  Hence  every  great  movement  of  God 
has  its  visible  beginnings  in  the  action  of  the  servaiit  of  God 
stepping  out  and  starting  in  humble  fashion  the  great  enter- 
prise which  God  desired  to  actualize  upon  the  earth.  Thus  the 


Site  of  First  Y.  M.  C.  A.  Camp. 


View  from  Camp  Northfield. 


Group  of  Campers. 


Farewell  to  Camp  Northficld. 


THE  NORTHFIELD   CONFERENCE.  241 

schools  and  thus  the  summer  conferences  of  Northfield  were 
chosen.  As  Mr.  Moody  went  throughout  the  length  and 
breadth  of  our  country  he  discovered  on  every  hand,  chil- 
dren of  God,  unsatisfied  with  their  knowledge  of  his  words 
and  longing  for  deeper  experiences  of  His  presence  and  pow- 
er. To  meet  this  deep  need  of  the  believer's  soul,  the  great 
evangelist  decided  to  call  together  from  every  part  of  America 
and  the  world,  students,  whether  young  men  or  women;  min- 
isters, missionaries  and  Christian  workers,  for  Bible  study, 
conference  and  prayer.  The  hearty  interest,  prayer  and  co- 
operation manifested  by  thousands,  whether  present  or  absent 
from  the  very  opening  conference  in  1880  clearly  proved  that 
their  purpose  and  spirit  were  accordant  with  the  divine  will, 
and  that  they  were  supplying  a  great  need  to  the  spiritual  life 
and  activity  of  the  Christian  world.  To  these  summer  con- 
vocations thousands  of  young  men  and  women  from  our  col- 
leges have  gathered,  with  results  to  themselves  and  to  their 
own  and  future  generations  which  the  Omniscient  One  alone 
can  estimate. 

To  Northfield  gladly  hastens  the  missionary  when  on  leave 
of  absence  from  his  far  away  field  of  labor,  where  isolation, 
deprivation  and  the  subtle  influences  of  antagonistic  religions 
and  degrading  surroundings  like  a  deadly  miasma  have  ener- 
vated his  spiritual  life.  And  he  drinks  to  the  recovery  of  his 
strength  and  the  renewal  of  his  powers  for  heroic  service. 

To  Northfield  comes  the  busy  pastor  at  vacation  time.  It 
was  the  saying  of  a  quaint  and  brilHant  preacher  of  Prince- 
ton. "Every  young  minister  after  a  dozen  years  in  active 
service,  is  like  a  pump  gone  dry.  He  needs  a  refilling  at  the 
top."  If  this  be  true  intellectually  how  much  more  is  it  a  fact 
that  spiritually  the  minister  needs  restoration  to  the  joy  of  his 
Lord  and  renewal  of  the  Holy  Spirit's  power. 

And  here  thousands  of  earnest  laymen  have  acquired  a 
more  perfect  knowledge  of  the  word  and  will  of  God;  and  have 
gone  forth  afresh  to  win  souls  to  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  In 
16 


242  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

fine,  the  deepest,  farthest  cry  of  the  Christian  Church  of  this 
generation  is  for  a  more  perfect  experience  of  the  presence 
and  power  of  her  hving  Lord  and  Head.  Northfield  in  its 
conference  work  is  one  of  the  most  important  factors  which 
God  has  given,  even  in  this  century  of  wonderful  gifts  from 
His  hands,  for  the  attainment  of  an  obedient,  spirit  filled  and 
fruitful  life. 

THE  VISITOR  TO  NORTHFIELD 

can  never  lose  his  first  impressions  of  the  quaint  and  typical 
New  England  town,  on  the  right  banks  of  the  Connecticut 
River,  just  below  the  base  line  of  Vermont  and  New  Hamp- 
shire as  they  rest  upon  the  upper  boundary  line  of  Massa- 
chusetts as  a  foundation.  The  Connecticut  at  this  point,  sep- 
arates New  Hampshire  and  Vermont.  It  was  remarked  by 
a  young  man  of  the  writer's  company  that  at  a  certain  point, 
two  miles  east  of  Northfield,  the  officiating  clergyman  at  a 
wedding  ceremony  could  stand  in  Massachusetts,  the  groom 
in  Vermont,  and  the  bride  in  New  Hampshire,  and  they  would 
all  be  within  speaking  distance  in  consumating  their  sacred 
contract.  The  valley  of  the  Connecticut  widens  at  this  point 
as  if  to  make  ready  for  the  birth  place  and  work  of  the  great 
evangelist.  To  the  north,  across  the  river,  lofty  moiuitain 
peaks,  range  behind  range,  stretch  away  like  steps  in  nature's 
staircase,  to  the  farthest  line  of  the  horizon.  To  the  south,  a 
mile  back  from  the  river,  we  reach  the  foot-hills,  ascending 
gradually  skyward,  heavily  wooded  and  green  to  their  sum- 
mits. As  we  are  driven  into  Northfield  proper,  we  find  that 
the  quaint  old  village,  kept  young  as  all  New  England  is,  with 
white  and  green  paint,  consists  of  a  single  street,  an  hundred 
and  seventy-five  feet  wide,  and  two  miles  long.  It  is  shaded 
on  either  side  by  double  rows  of  elms  and  maples,  back  of 
s\'hich  are  stately  houses,  some  modern,  but  the  greater  num- 
ber colonial  in  style,  and  in  actual  history.  Some  of  them  re- 
tain their  massive  chimneys,  their  imposing  columns  and  pilas- 


THE    NORTHFIELD    CONFERENCE.  243 

ters,  their  roof-guards  and  curious  circular-headed  windows 
and  fanhghts.  Here  we  are,  in  the  heart  of  dignified  rural 
New  England,  as  it  was  a  century  ago. 

Driving  on  through  this  splendid  corridor  of  natural  beau- 
ty, we  quickly  cross  the  line  invisible,  which  brings  us  into 
East  Northfield,  which  is  the  seat  of  all  the  features  of  especial 
interest  to  the  conference  visitors.  To  the  right  we  turn  and 
climb  slowly  a  moderate  hill,  and  on  the  left,  upon  the  brow  of 
this  rise,  we  have  pointed  out  to  us  the  home  of  Mother 
Moody  and  the  house  where  D.  L.,  as  the  natives  here  love  to 
call  him,  was  born. 

From  her  marriage  until  her  death,  this  house  was  the  home 
of  Betsey  Holton  Moody.  And  until  her  death  in  January, 
1896,  Dwight  when  at  home  visited  her  twice  or  oftener  daily. 
No  matter  how  great  the  pressure  of  school  or  conference 
duties,  the  devoted  son  came  to  greet  and  cheer  his  aged, 
house-bound  mother. 

Turning  to  the  left,  around  the  old  homestead,  the  visitor 
passes  orchards  and  fields  and  finds  himself  face  to  face  with 
the  Auditorium,  a  noble  structure,  seating  2500  persons,  and 
carefully  adapted  to  the  needs  for  seeing,  hearing  and  breath- 
ing of  the  great  summer  gatherings.  Passing  on,  in  circular 
fashion  along  the  winding  drives  of  the  great  cam'pus  which  is 
like  one  limitless  lawn  of  unnumbered  acres,  and  which  adds 
much  to  the  beauty  and  comfort  of  the  whole  scene,  we  pass 
in  turn  East,  West,  Stone  and  Marquand  Halls,  the  Talcott 
Library  and  the  Skinner  Gymnasium.  We  are  impatient  to 
see  Mr.  Moody's  own  home,  and  suddenly  it  bursts  upon  our 
eyes,  a  large  and  typical  New  England  dwelling  house.  It  is 
painted  white  and  has  green  shutters,  and  stands  in  the  centre 
of  a  spacious  lawn  which  slopes  outward  to  the  main  street, 
on  the  farther  side  of  which  a  larger  field  slopes  gradually  tc 
the  river's  edge.  Immediately  in  front  of  Mr.  Moody's  home 
a  venerable  elm,  encircled  with  a  rustic  seat,  invites  one 
to  rest,  to  look,  to  reflect,  to  purpose  a  loftier  life.     This  is 


244  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

your  first  vacation  at  Northfiekl.  Surely  you  need  it  for  body, 
mind  and  soul;  and  earnest  prayer  goes  up  that  you  may  im- 
prove its  opportunities  to  the  fullest.  But  first  that  which 
is  natural,  afterward  that  which  is  spiritual.  And  as  you 
look  joyfully  around,  you  exclaim, 

"BEAUTIFUL  FOR  SITUATION 
is  this  New  England  Mount  of  Transfiguration."  The  Con- 
necticut, like  a  silver  thread  of  gigantic  size,  winds  and  flows 
calmly  westward.  Beyond  the  river,  looking  northward, 
you  behold  mountain  range  above  range,  climaxing  in  the 
Green  Mountains  of  Vermont.  And  turning  toward  the  east, 
you  can  discern  in  faint  outline,  blue  and  hazy  with  distance, 
the  majestic  White  Mountains  of  New  Hampshire. 

Amid  suroundings  so  elevating  and  yet  so  humbling,  the 
writer  realized  and  rejoiced  in  the 'fact  that  he  was  upon  the 
threshold  of  one  of  the  epoch  making  experiences  of  his  life. 
The  time  was  fully  ripe,  weary  of  work  that  was  not  productive 
of  fruit,  unsatisfied  with  himself,  yearning  for  the  renewing  of 
spiritual  life  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  for  a  closer  fellowship  with 
the  living  Christ,  he  had  come  to  Northfield  like  multitudes 
of  others,  with  a  single  aim,  to  touch  the  hem  of  the  Master's 
garment,  and  to  receive  new  life  and  power  from  Him.  The 
first  man  he  saw  was  the  central  figure  of  the  coming  days. 
Mr.  Moody  himself,  driving  in  his  buggy,  upon  some  errand 
incident  to  the  minor  duties  of  the  farm.  For  he  was  always 
a  man  of  affairs;  the  Lord's  affairs  first,  and  afterwards  his 
own.  The  last  vision  of  him  was  on  a  later  summer,  in  the 
same  buggy,  with  his  little  grand  child,  Irene  Whittle — now  in 
Heaven — upon  his  knee,  and  both  waving  good-bye  to  our 
departing  train. 

THE  NORTHFIELD  SUMMER  CONFERENCES 
have  met  a  great  need  in  the  Christian  work  of  the  church  in 
America.     They    became    from    their    inauguration  an  im- 
measurable factor  in  the  development    of    Christian  life  and 


THE   NORTHFIELD   CONFERENCE.  245 

service.  Their  influence  is  being  felt  from  the  Atlantic  to  the 
Pacific,  from  the  regions  of  Upper  Canada  to  the  Gulf  of 
Mexico.  That  influence  has  already  touched  and  quickened 
thousands  of  ministers  of  the  gospel  and  tens  of  thousands 
of  Sabbath  school  teachers  and  other  Christian  workers.  The 
testimony  fresh  and  impressive  of  many  of  the  leading  pas- 
tors of  New  York  City,  as  to  the  blessings  there  received,  are 
most  convincing,  as  to  the  unmeasurable  good  these  summer 
convocations  are  accomplishing. 

THE  FIRST  CONFERENCE 

was  held  in  1880;  the  second,  the  next  year;  then,  owing  to 
Mr.  Moody's  campaigns  in  Great  Britain,  there  were  no  con- 
ferences in  1882,  1883  and  1884.  The  third  gathering  was 
in  1885,  since  which  time  they  have  been  held  each  year.  In 
1893  Mr.  Moody's  attention  was  divided  between  Northfield 
and  his  aggressive  gospel  work  at  the  World's  Fair,  Chicago. 
But  his  place  as  Northfield  leader  was  ably  filled  by  that  saintly 
yet  always  self-poised  pastor  and  spiritual  director,  the  Rev. 
Dr.  Gordon,  of  Boston.  The  initial  conference  for  Christian 
workers  occupied  the  first  ten  days  of  September,  1880.  It 
was  attended  by  hundreds  of  visitors,  including  a  delegation 
from  the  British  Isles.  East  Hall  was  unequal  to  the  de- 
mands upon  it.  Many  visitors  slept  and  ate  in  tents — a  prac- 
tice still  a  striking  trait  of  Northfield.  Others  slept  in  gar- 
rets and  barns.  In  fine,  every  available  place  was  brought  into 
requisition,  and  the  quiet  New  England  village  slowly  awak- 
ened to  the  realization  that  a  new  era  had  dawned,  and  a  new 
importance  had  become  its  own,  and  that  it  should  hence- 
forth be  a  centre  of  light  and  life  to  the  world  of  believers,  as 
it  had  already  become  through  its  institutions  of  Christian 
education,  a  fountain  of  mental  and  spiritual  culture  to  hun- 
dreds of  aspiring  young  men  and  women.  The  Congrega- 
tional Church  was  not  large  enough  for  a  meeting  place,  and 
a  large  tent  was  pitched  behind  East  Hall.     The  predominant 


246  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

idea  and  aim  of  that  great  conference  was  spiritual  power. 
The  doctrine  of  the  Holy  Spirit  as  the  source  of  all  blessing 
and  eflficiency  was  emphasized  and  souj^ht  after  in  every  ad- 
dress and  pra)'er. 

The  Conference  of  each  succeeding  year  has  developed  a 
distinct  individuality  and  manifested  its  own  peculiar  side  of 
the  manifold  enrichment  of  the  grace  of  (jod. 

One  year  the  ])ower  of  the  Holy  Ghost  has  been  most  prom- 
inent in  prayer,  teaching  and  manifestation.  At  another,  the 
Saviorhood  and  Lordship  of  the  Son  of  (iod.  At  a  third,  life 
and  service  have  been  most  strongly  emphasized.  But  there 
has  never  failed  the  blending  with  high  spiritual  teaching  and 
subjective  aspiration  the  needs  and  claims  of  actual  work  in  a 
dying  world  abroad  and  at  home.  We  have  always  been  led 
down  from  the  Mount  of  Transfiguration  into  the  Valley  of 
Human  Need,  as  we  have  considered  the  interests  of  the 
foreign  mission  field  and  of  the  city  slum.  In  each  and  every 
annual  gathering  there  has  been  the  happy  proportioning  of 
the  interests  of  the  inner  life  with  the  claims  of  outward  ag- 
gressive work.     The  memorable 

FIRST  CHRISTIAN  WORKER'S  CONFERENCE 

was  unique.  It  has  never  been  reproduced,  nor  can  it  ever  be. 
It  was  the  first  overflow  of  a  spiritual  Niagara  of  deep  need, 
yearning  desires,  humble  confession  of  sin,  heart  searchings, 
self  humblings,  and  strong  cryings  unto  God  for  mercy  and 
for  blessing,  filled  the  air.  At  the  close  of  the  ninth  day,  3000 
requests  for  prayer  were  piled  up  on  Mr.  Moody's  desk,  which 
purposely  he  had  not  presented  until  the  last  of  the  confer- 
ence, because,  as  he  said,  "We  need  to  get  right  ourselves  with 
God  before  we  can  pray  for  others."  As  a  general  remark  it 
may  be  accurate  to  say  that  the  Northfield  Conferences  in  their 
evolution,  have  progressed  from  the  objective  to  the  subjec- 
tive. In  the  gatherings  of  earlier  years,  the  evangelist,  his  in- 
terests and  methods  of  work    were    in    the    foreground,  and 


THE    NORTHFIELD    CONFERENCE.  247 

every  phase  of  outward  aggressive  work  occupied  much  at- 
tention. But  since  the  conference  of  1894,  when  Rev.  F.  B. 
Meyer,  of  London,  paid  his  second  visit,  it  has  been  more 
characteristic  of  these  annual  gatherings  that 

CERTAIN  GREAT  SPIRITUAL  TRUTHS, 

Hkc  the  surrender  of  the  will,  and  the  secret  of  victory,  rest 
and  power,  have  gained  the  pre-eminence,  presented  day  by 
day  by  the  mighty  personality  of  a  Meyer,  a  Murray  or  a  Mor- 
gan. If  the  evolution  of  Northfield  has  been  from  service  to- 
ward life,  in  its  inner  and  deeper  fullness,  it  is  only  that  out  of 
a  richer  blessing  from  God  more  effective  service  unto  our 
fellowman  might  eventually  issue. 

The  Summer  Conference  work  at  Northfield  is  divided  into 
three  conventions.     The  first,  in  order  of-the  season,  is  the 
WORLD'S  STUDENT  CONFERENCE, 

which  opens  the  last  week  in  June,  and  continues  throughout 
the  first  week  of  July.  It  had  its  birth  in  the  summer  of  1887, 
in  Recitation  Hall,  Mt.  Hermon  Seminary.  This  has  always 
been  a  gathering  of  surpassing  interest,  growing  to  such  en- 
thusiasm as  only  aroused  young  men  know  how  to  display. 
It  has  been  a  gathering  unique,  in  its  adaptability  to  the  wishes 
and  needs  of  earnest  young  men.  Five  hundred  delegates, 
from  the  leading  colleges  and  preparatory  schools  of  our 
country,  attend.  These  hundreds  of  delegates  represent  di- 
rectly thousands  of  students  and  return  to  their  colleges  witli 
changed  purposes,  deepened  spiritual  lives  and  hearts  on  fire, 
to  become  centers  of  blessing  and  salvation  to  all  their  com- 
rades. Note  a  single  typical  instance.  In  1894  four  young 
men  came  to  Northfield  for  the  first  time.  They  were  Chris- 
tians when  they  came,  but  they  went  home  with  a  new  love  to 
Christ  in  their  hearts,  and  a  new  force  in  their  lives.  The  next 
autumn. their  western  college  enjoyed  the  greatest  revival  in 
its  history.  Nominal  Christians  among  the  students  became 
earnest  ones,  and  seventy-five  fellow-students  were  converted 


248  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

to  Christ.  All  this  was  due,  humanly  speaking,  to  the  visit  of 
four  delegates  to  the  world's  student  conference.  No  gath- 
ering of  the  year  at  Northfield  awakens  so  much  enthusiasm 
or  becomes  a  more  important  factor  for  good,  than  this  com- 
ing together  of  young  men.  Mr.  Moody  has  catered  very  skill- 
fully to  the  peculiar  needs  of  Christian  young  men  of  intel- 
lectual and  spiritual  aspiration.  He  has  met  them  upon  the 
plane  of  their  special  wants  and  perils.  It  was  here  that  Prof. 
Henry  Drummond,  of  Edinburgh,  did  his  best  work  in  Amer- 
ica. And  Dr.  McKenzie,  of  Cambridge,  Massachusetts,  has 
been  in  yearly  demand  by  the  young  men's  conferences,  doing 
noble  service.  Robert  E.  Speer,  the  spirit-filled  young  secre- 
tary of  the  Presbyterian  Board  of  Foreign  Missions;  and  Sec- 
retary Wishard,  of  the  College  Young  Men's  Christian  Asso- 
ciation, have  stirred  men's  souls  unto  a  deeper  casting  down 
of  self  at  the  Savior's  feet,  and  to  higher  and  more  heroic  un- 
dertakings in  His  kingdom.  Plere  the  brilliant,  intellectual 
gifts  in  thought  and  speech  of  President  Patton  and  Dr.  Henry 
J.  Van  Dyke,  of  Princeton  University,  have  exemplified  and 
emphasized  the  .possibilities  of  a  trained  will  to  glorify  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  when  consecrated  to  his  cause. 

This  conference  has  always  covered  the  Fourth  of  July  pur- 
posely, I  believe,  and  the  students'  patriotic  celebration  in  the 
great  auditorium,  is  an  event  truly  unapproached  by  any  pre- 
vious experience  of  your  life;  ajid  is  unapproachable,  save  by 
hundreds  of  college  men,  under  circumstances  of  fellowship 
and  gladness  like  those  of  Northfield.  The  speeches,  the  col- 
lege songs  and  yells,  the  inimitable  salutes  to  "Old  Glory,"  the 
soul  stirring  actions,  and  the  atmosphere  of  the  whole  occa- 
sion combine  to  make  it  the  one  nation's  birthday  of  all  your 
life,  for  by  comparison  with  this  remarkable  celebration,  all 
past  fourths  are  forgotten,  but  this  great  day  at  Northfield 
can  never  be.  And  henceforth  the  flame  of  love  to  country 
and  to  the  flag  shall  burn  brightly  upon  the  altars  of  your 
heart  as  they  could  not  possibly  have  done  had  you  never  spent 


THE   NORTHFIELD    CONFERENCE.    .  249 

a  nation's  birthday  with  JNIoody  and  the  young  men,  fairly 
making  the  dome  of  the  universe  resonant  with  rejoicings. 
The  delegates  to  this  conference  came,  in  the  early  years  of 
its  existence,  from  all  parts  of  our  own  country  and  from  all 
over  the  world,  thus  realizing  the  broad  desire  of  its  founder 
and  justifying  in  fact  its  comprehensive  name.  But  in  the  lat- 
er years  its  territory  has  become  more  circumscribed,  includ- 
ing chiefly  students  of  the  United  States  west  of  the  Mississip- 
pi and  north  of  Tennessee.  But  Northfield  has  inspired  the 
planting  of  other  conferences  to  meet  the  needs  of  the  various 
sections.  The  Lake  Geneva  Conference  on  the  west,  and  the 
Knoxville  gathering  in  the  south,  are  branches  of  the  one 
great  northern  work.  The  Keswick  Convention,  of  England, 
under  the  stimulus  of  Northfield's  example,  inaugurated  in 
1889  a  distinct  work  for  students.  Frankfort-on-Main  is 
meeting  the  same  need  in  Germany.  The  Scandinavian  uni- 
versities have  established  like  schools  in  Denmark,  and  great 
student  gatherings  occur  there  annually.  Japan  started  the 
same  blessed  movement  in  1889  at  the  great  conference  at 
Kyoto,  attended  by  500  Japanese  students.  And  from  the  ex- 
ample of  this  meeting  in  Japan  thousands  of  students  have 
joined  in  kindred  movements  in  Ceylon,  Persia,  Turkey  and 
India. 

All  hail  to  Northfield  as  the  pioneer  and  originator  of  the 
Summer  School.  But  all  hail  to  her  a  thousand-fold  more 
for  the  incalculable  influences  of  blessing  she  has  brought  di- 
rectly to  the  college  life  of  America.  Notice  these  three  posi- 
tive and  all  important  results  of  the  Northfield  Student  Con- 
ference. It  has  firmly  established  in  hundreds  of  schools  and 
colleges  systematic  Bible  study.  It  has  introduced  for  the 
first  time,  truly  effective  methods  of  Christian  work  among 
college  men.  In  many  such  institutions  young  men  are  not 
permitted  to  work  for  others  until  they  have  had  the  experi- 
ences and  training  of  at  least  one  Northfield  Conference.  And 
Northfield  is  the  parent  of  the  Student  Volunteer  Movement 


250  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

fi)r  Forcis^n  Missions,  which  rrcsideiit  McCosh,  of  Princeton. 
University,  pronounced  "the  greatest  missionary  revival  since 
the  first  century."  A  movement  which  has  already  sent  nine 
hundred  educated  young  men  and  women  to  the  foreign  field, 
and  has  secured  the  pledge  of  three  thousand  more  to  go, 
when  the  means  shall  be  provided.  And  when  we  halt  to  con- 
sider the  eflfect  of  Northfield  upon  the  individual  student  in 
leading  to  a  fuller  vision  of  the  Christ,  as  Savior  and  Lord,  in 
bracing  the  vacillating  and  motiveless  to  a  high  and  heroic 
purpose,  and  in  commanding  the  whole  man  henceforth  for 
the  love  and  service  of  the  Heavenly  Master,  then  we  must 
exclaim,  "Praise  God  for  this  priceless  factor  in  the  culture  of 
the  Christian  life  of  America's  young  men  and  for  the  pros- 
pect through  them  of  winning  our  country  for  the  Son  of 
God." 

THE  YOUNG  WOMEN'S  CONFERENCE 
begins  the  third  week  in  July  of  each  year,  and  continues  for 
ten  days.     The  ruling  idea  and  purpose  of  both  young  people's 
conferences  is  preparation  for  service. 

With  the  same  purpose  in  view,  the  Young  W^omen's  Con- 
ference has  much  in  common  w'ith  the  Young  Men's,  but  dif- 
fers, in  order  to  adapt  itself  to  the  peculiar  needs  of  woman 
in  her  particular  sphere  and  methods  of  Christian  service. 

Bible  study  is  a  prominent  feature.  The  claims  of  Foreign 
and  Home  Missions  are  strongly  presented  by  eminent  men 
and  women.  The  spirit  and  methods  of  Christian  work  in 
every  sphere,  where  modern  Marys  do  what  they  can  for  their 
Lord,  are  clearly  and  earnestly  set  forth  by  skilled  teachers 
and  leaders. 

l>ut  serious  themes  and  actions  do  not  wholly  engage  the 
young  women  during  their  Northfield  summer  outing.  Re- 
creations of  various  kinds,  delightful  fellowship,  the  commun- 
ion of  the  saints  in  its  lighter  forms,  the  beginning  of  life-long 
frien(lshi]:)s,  gatherings  for  social  enjoyments  enlivened  by 
rollicking  songs  from  the  Mount  Holyoke  or  other  young 


THE   NORTHFIELD    CONFERENCE.  251 

women's  glee  club,  and  the  unique  and  sunshiny  hospitality  of 
Mr.  Moody,  that  inimitable  host,  who  had  the  faculty  of  mak- 
ing you  feel  that  you  owned  all  Northfield;  a  corn  roast,  or  a 
clam  bake,  in  the  moonlight  on  the  mountain  side,  or  an  after- 
non  drive  to  Brattleboro  on  Mount  Hermon,  all  intermingled 
with  the  more  serious  portions  of  the  program.  And  then  the 
climaxing  an<l  sealing  ui  all  by  a  consecration  hour  on  Round 
Top  at  sun  set  and  then  a  farewell  service  in  the  Auditorium, 
in  which  the  Master's  lordship  and  claims  upon  you,  arc  em- 
phasized and  felt,  as  they  have  never  been  before  in  all  your 
life.  And  the  young  women  go  back  to  their  life  duties  with  a 
broader  vision,  a  higher  ideal,  a  steadier  purpose,  and  a  more 
complete  devotion  to  their  Lord  than  they  have  ever  known 
before. 

As  we  pass  on  to  describe  the    Conference    for    Christian 
workers  a  glance  at 

CAMP  NORTHFIELD 
will  interest  the  reader  and  is  necessary  to  a  complete  record 
of  the  spiritual  work  of  Northfield,  in  behalf  of  its  summer 
visitors.  This  camp  was  established  to  benefit  young  men 
not  of  the  student  class,  but  in  the  business  world.  With  this 
end  in  view,  Mr.  Moody  asked  the  International  Committee  of 
the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  to  organize  a  camp 
for  young  men,  where  they  might  come  for  an  outing  at  little 
cost  during  July  and  August.  The  camp  was  opened  July, 
1895,  in  a  beautiful  pine  grove  at  the  foot  of  Notch  Mountain, 
a  mile  back  of  East  Northfield.  Under  the  wise  management 
of  an  experienced  Y.  M.  C.  A.  secretary  it  is  doing  an  impor- 
tant work  for  young  men,  who  come  from  the  counting  room, 
the  store  and  workshop  of  the  great  city,  to  breathe  the  incom- 
parable air  of  the  New  England  hills ;  perfumed  and  vitalized 
by  the  fragrance  of  the  pines.  By  the  very  newness  and 
charm  of  their  surroundings  these  new  men  are  surprisingly 
open  to  the  Christian  influences  which  now  surround  them.  A 
hearty  welcome,  a  plentiful  table,  a  quiet  tent,  the  fragrance 


252  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

of  the  woods  compelling  sleep,  physical  recreation  of  all  sorts, 
greet  them  and  they  are  susceptible  to  any  influence  that  may 
come  to  them. 

To  the  supreme  end  of  their  spiritual  welfare,  recreations 
and  jolly  hours  of  fellowship  are  considered  but  the  means, 
and  more  serious  influences  soon  begin  their  work.  Bible 
study,  prayer  and  testimony,  soul  moving  addresses  by  lead- 
ing conference  speakers  who  pay  special  visits  to  the  camp 
fires,  a  heart  to  heart  talk  with  some  newly  found  comrade  and 
friend,  blessed  fellowship  with  earnest  Christians  on  every 
side  are  features  of  camp  life  which  help  to  lead  men  to  Christ. 
And  soon  it  becomes  as  natural  and  easy  to  receive  the  Son  of 
God  by  faith,  as  to  breathe  in  the  ozone  of  the  mountain  air. 
And  scores  of  young  men  go  back  to  life's  work  and  tempta- 
tions thanking  God  for  Northlield  as  the  starting  point  of  a 
changed  life,  as  the  time  and  place  where  they  became  new 
creatures  in  Christ  Jesus. 

THE  CHRISTIAN  WORKERS'  CONFERENCE. 

This  last  and  crowning  assembly  of  the  year  opens  August 
first,  and  continues  for  three  weeks.  As  the  name  signifies,  it 
is  designed  to  meet  the  wants  of  mature  Christians,  wearied 
and  exhausted  by  the  stress  and  drain  of  their  labor,  whether 
in  the  pulpit,  foreign  mission  field  or  in  other  spheres  of 
Christian  activity.  Its  purpose  is  to  enrich  the  mind  with 
Bible  truth  and  with  the  knowledge  of  the  best  methods  of 
Christian  work,  and  to  so  deepen  the  spiritual  life  that  the  re- 
cipient of  blessing  shall  come  into  a  more  perfect  union  with 
Christ,  and  obedience  unto  his  living  Lord  and  shall  go  forth 
to  accomplish  jjy  the  Holy  Spirit's  power  results  large  and 
glorious  in  the  Master's  kingdom.  Religious  conventions 
elsewhere  are  marvelous  in  the  good  they  accomplish,  but 
Northfield  is  luiique  and  pre-eminent  in  spiritual  tone,  in  its 
power  to  impress  and  mould  and  in  its  lasting  efifects.  At 
other  conventions  we  can  say  we  were  blessed,  but  at  North- 


THE  NORTHFIELD   CONFERENCE.  253 

field,  thousands  of  us  can  gratefully  and  humbly  say,  we  came 
to  know  and  obey  the  Christ  Himself,  so  that  the  life  since 
then  has  been  real,  rest-filled,  and  regnant,  as 

"Moment  by  moment  I'm  kept  in  His  love; 
Moment  by  moment  I've  life  from  above." 

Each  day  at  the  August  Conference  is  fully  and  most  pro- 
fitably occupied.  Its  privileges  begin  with  the  sunrise  prayer 
meetings,  led  by  Mr.  Moody,  and  here  he  becomes  as  confiden- 
tial and  helpful  as  if  we  were  gathered  around  his  own  family 
hearthstone.  Then  at  ten  o'clock  and  when  the  program  is 
very  full,  at  nine  A.  M.,  the  addresses  in  the  Auditorium  begin. 
One  eminent  speaker  will  occupy  the  desk  from  nine  to  ten; 
a  second  from  ten  to  eleven,  a  third  from  eleven  to  twelve.  Re- 
cess for  dinner  and  rest  is  taken  at  noon.  The  afternoon 
meetings  begin  at  three  o'clock.  Mr.  Moody's  admonition  to 
avoid  excess  in  attending  meetings  beyond  your  profit  or 
strength  is  of  no  avail,  and  you  find  yourself  again,  joining  in 
the  soul  stirring  gospel  songs,  and  Hstening  to  Dr.  Torrey  on 
some  practical  phase  of  Bible  study,  or  to  Dr.  Gray  in  one  of 
his  masterly  analyses  of  a  great  masterpiece  of  inspiration, 
Job,  Romans,  Ephesians  or  Galatians.  This  service  being 
over,  you  are  invited  to  Round  Top  to  ask  any  reasonable 
questions  which  may  have  arisen  in  your  mind  concerning 
scriptural  truth,  or  practical  living.  Some  rare  ripe  Bible  stu- 
dent like  Dr.  Erdman,  of  Philadelphia,  or  Prebendary  Webb- 
Peploe  of  London,  is  there  to  help  you  solve  the  problems  of 
doctrine  or  duty,  which  Northfield  has  brought  to  the  fore- 
ground in  your  thoroughly  aroused  mind  and  nature. 

At  seven  P.  M.  you  have  hastened  again  to  Round  Top,  to 
enter  into  the  spirit  and  receive  the  blessing  of  the  twilight 
service.  Here  the  claims  of  Christ  upon  the  believer  for  con- 
secration of  heart  and  will  and  hand  to  his  Lord,  are  empha- 
sized, as  only  amid  such  surroundings  and  from  such  Spirit 
filled  speakers  it  is  possible  to  impress  them. 

The  great  evangelist  is  buried  on  this  green  knoll,  and  upon 


254  DWIGIIT  L.  MOODY. 

this  very  spot,  many  a  believer  has  in  the  past  and  shall  in  the 
future,  know  the  hajjpy  moment  of  death  and  burial  unto  sin, 
and  of  resurrection  unto  a  new  life  of  purpose  and  power  by 
the  touch  of  the  Spirit  of  God.  The  pleadings  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  tender  and  irresistible  which  have  come  to  us  on  Round 
Top  as  the  day  was  dying,  through  the  personality  of  Mabie, 
Gordon,  Meyer,  Murray  or  Moody,  have  made  our  hearts  burn 
within  us,  as  did  the  disciples  when  their  unrecognized  risen 
Lord  conversed  with  them  on  the  way  to  Emmaus,  and  have 
kindled  in  our  hearts  fires  of  love  and  devotion  to  Christ, 
which  can  never  die  out. 

Then,  as  the  twilight  deepens,  and  the  stars  shine  out,  the 
great  company  moves  in  silence  and  soberness  over  the  hills 
toward  the  Auditorium  again,  to  hear  with  consecrated  mind 
and  heart,  the  interests  of  the  kingdom  on  foreign  field,  or  city 
slum  presented  by  some  hero  of  the  cross,  honored  of  God, 
and  known  among  men.  And  new  obligations  are  born  here 
as  always,  of  new  opportunities,  and  the  Mount  of  Transfig- 
uration requires  us  to  go  forward  in  the  service  of  the  King. 

After  the  evening  meeting  the  great  congregation  breaks 
into  little  groups,  who  gather  on  porches,  and  under  trees,  on 
the  way  side,  for  conference,  confession  and  prayer  that  the 
fullness  of  blessing  may  come  upon  each  individual  conscious 
of  need  and  hungry,  as  never  before,  for  Christ  to  dwell  in  his 
heart  by  faith. 

Time  and  space  fail  us  to  speak  in  detail,  of  the  strong  men 
of  God  who  as  channels  of  the  Holy  Sj^irit  have  made  this 
Conference  a  factor  for  the  blessing  of  thousands.  ]\Toody 
himself  was  always  the  central  figure  as  he  was  the  leader  and 
controlling  spirit  of  everything  with  which  he  had  to  do.  To 
his  energy,  sagacity,  resourcefulness  and  faith,  all,  next  to 
God,  is  due.  We  are  all  under  lasting  bonds  of  gratitude  to 
Northfield's  head  for  the  gifted  and  helpful  spiritual  leaders 
and  teachers  from  our  own  ct)imtry  and  the  world,  whom  he 
had  brought  to  speak  to  us  at  the  August  conferences.     But 


THE    NORTIIFIELD    CONFERENCE.  255 

after  all,  the  first  and  most  indispensable  personality  there  has 
been  the  great  evangelist  himself.  Modest,  genial  and  self- 
abnegating,  declining  to  preach  or  speak  at  length,  except  by 
the  repeated  urging  of  conference  guests,  and  of  the  country 
folk,  who  loved  him  most  of  all,  who  poured  in,  on  convention 
Sabbaths,  in  every  sort  of  conveyance;  then  the  pressure  be- 
came irresistible  and  after  a  full  morning  service  and  sermon 
by  other  speakers,  the  great  evangeUst  would  leave  the  plat- 
form, ascend  the  choir  stairs  until  he  reached  a  point  within 
vision  of  every  gallery  seat,  and,  standing  there  in  the  very 
center  of  the  large  chorus  choir,  he  would  pour  out  his  soul 
upon  some  theme  dear  to  his  heart,  the  love  of  God,  the  duty 
of  repentance,  or  "Faith  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 

Though  he  asserted  himself  as  little  as  possible,  Moody  was 
the  head  and  absolute  controller  of  the  conference.  In  the 
best  sense,  he  was  at  Northfield,  as  everywhere  else,  an  auto- 
crat, not  for  selfish  ends  but  for  the  glory  of  God,  and  the  best 
good  of  all.  No  man  led  in  prayer,  even,  save  by  the  great 
leader's  consent  and  desire.  This  is  one  of  the  chief  requisites 
of  a  great  leader  in  any  sphere,  to  be  able  to  marshall  the  right 
men  as  his  co-laborers.  Mr.  Moody  was  conspicuously  gifted 
with  this  essential  Cjuality  of  leadership.  Many  remarkable 
men  have  labored  with  him  at  the  conferences.  Among  those 
from  abroad  may  be  named  Dr.  Bonar,  of  Scotland,  Reverends 
F.  B.  Meyer,  Webb-Peploe,  G.  Campbell  Morgan,  Geo.  H.  C. 
McGregor,  of  London,  and  the  saintly  missionary,  Andrew 
Murray,  of  South  Africa.  And  from  our  own  country,  many 
men  of  large  equipment  of  mind  and  soul  for  helpfulness. 
Among  them  have  been  Drs.  Gordon,  Torrey,  Mabie,  Pierson, 
Dixon  and  Chapman,  and  President  Weston.  Who  that  was 
present  on  the  Sabbath  morning  of  August,  1894,  can  ever 
lose  the  impressions  made  by  Dr.  Gordon's  sermon,  on  The 
Resurrection,  as  it  enlarged  our  vision  of  life,  and  of  heaven, 
and  intensified  our  adoration  and  love  for  Him  who  is  Himself 
the  resurrection  and  the  life.    The  preacher  spake  as  by  au- 


256  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

tHority  that  morning  out  of  the  depths  of  his  own  rich  experi- 
ence of  faith  and  joy.  He  died  the  following  February,  and 
as  we  recall  his  surroundings  in  the  great  and  hushed  congre- 
gation of  the  Auditorium,  and  hear  the  sermon  again  and  be- 
hold the  saintly,  strong  man  who  preached  and  feel  again  the 
stimulus  of  his  own  great  conviction  of  triumph  in  the  face  of 
cleath,  we  bless  God  anew  for  "Jesus  Christ,  his  Son,  who  hath 
abolished  death  and  brought  hfe  and  immortality  to  light." 

Or  who  that  heard  F.  B.  Meyer,  in  1892,  or  1894  or  1896, 
came  away  unmoved  and  unchanged,  at  least  in  thought  and 
aspiration?  How  masterfully  did  he  unveil  to  our  own  eyes 
and  seemingly  to  all  the  world  the  hidden  sin  within  our  hearts, 
the  long  cherished  ideal,  the  undue  love  of  self,  and  the  persis- 
tent resistance  of  our  unsurrendered  will.  How  he  ''hewed  us 
with  words"  like  the  prophet  of  old,  until  in  contrition  and 
confession  we  found  ourselves  again,  like  awakened  penitents 
at  the  foot  of  the  cross,  crying  for  pardon  from  sins  of  omis- 
sion and  of  commission.  If  you  listen,  you  can  hear  again  his 
ringing,  piercing  comand,  "Get  right  with  God!  Get  out  into 
the  woods,  or  anywhere,  and  be  alone  with  God  until  the  past 
is  blotted  out  and  new  purpose  and  will-power  be  claimed  from 
heaven  by  a  desperately  earnest  and  acting  faith!"  Then  hav- 
ing been  used  of  God  to  smite  us,  and  humble  us  unto  true  re- 
pentance, and  abandonment  of  sin,  he  would  lift  us  to  our  feet 
as  he  enkindled  hope  and  purpose,  providing  we  would  re- 
nounce sin  and  self,  and  yield  all  to  the  will  of  Christ.  Then 
we  could  go  forth,  not  boasting  of  any  attainment,  but  to 
maintain  henceforth  an  unbroken  attitude  of  loyalty  to  our 
Lord,  like  the  unswerving  loyalty  of  the  compass  needle  to  its 
north  pole.  And  wonderful  was  the  knowledge  of  the  Bible 
possessed  by  Prebendary  Pcploe,  of  St.  Paul's  Cathedral, 
London,  as  he  drew  therefrom  treasures  new  and  old,  and 
proclaimed  trust  and  obedience  as  the  secrets  of  rest,  victory 
and  fruitfulness  in  the  Christian  life.  Then  each  morning, 
after  Peploe  spoke,  in  the  August  conference  of  1895,  we  en- 


THE    NORTHFIELD    CONFERENCE.  257 

joyed  an  hour  which  was  spent  as  nearly  within  the  holy  of 
holies  as  is  possible  this  side  of  heaven,  while  Andrew  Murray, 
that  true  mystic,  yet  faithful  worker,  who  exemplified  in  such 
remarkable  degree  the  humility,  purity  and  love  which  he 
urged  upon  his  eager  auditors,  with  the  authority  of  a  verita- 
ble prophet  of  God,  and  yet  with  the  yearning  of  a  spiritual 
father  pleading  with  his  own  children  that  they  might  be  will- 
ing to  be  blessed  in  soul  as  they  were  in  body. 

Holiness  is  the  supreme  aim  and  passion  of  Andrew  Mur- 
ray''s  life,  and  his  mind  and  soul  seemed  consumed  with  the 
longing  that  every  child  of  God  should  become  like  Christ  in 
purity  and  beauty  of  character.  Mr.  McGregor's  gentle  and 
persuasive  manner, springing  from  a  rare  sweetness  of  disposi- 
tion and  a  deep  spiritual  experience  have  left  lasting  impres- 
sions. And  Campbell  Alorgan  has  surprised  and  delighted 
every  one,  as  he  has  opened,  like  a  flower  into  fuller  bloom 
each  year,  revealing  a  sweep  of  spiritual  vision  and  a  grasp  of 
the  strong  eternal,  which  first  brings  you  down  into  the  depths 
of  sorrow  for  sin,  and  then  lifts  you  to  heights  of  joy  .according 
as  you  fully  claim  by  faith  God's  Son  as  your  Redeemer  from 
sin.  The  men  of  God  at  Northfield  have  done  much  to  make 
it  what  it  is  as  a  force  for  good,  but  they  themselves  empha- 
sized God's  command  on  the  Mount  of  Transfiguration, 
''Jesus  only."  They  themselves  are  willing  to  be  forgotten, 
that  "God  may  be  all  in  all." 

In  reflecting  upon  the  conference  work  of  Mr.  Moody,  the 
reader  cannot  fail  to  have  noted  certain  interesting  charac- 
teristics of  the  conventions.  They  are  wonderfully  Catholic 
in  spirit.  Northfield,  as  Dr.  Schofield.  pastor  of  the  Congre- 
gational Church,  of  the  town,  aptly  says:  "Is  a  world  wide  in- 
fluence for  evangelical  truth,  and  it  stands  for  the  widest  bro- 
therhood consistent  with  loyalty  to  Christ." 

The  Keswick  Conference  at  Lake  Windermere,  England, 
though  repudiating  sinless  perfection,  stands  distinctly  for 
truths  along  the  line  of  spiritual  attainment,  for  rest,  victory 
17 


258  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

and  power,  through  an  overwhelming  faith  following  upon  an 
utter  surrender  and  absolute  dependence  upon  the  Holy  Spir- 
it. And  Keswick  is  a  lofty  mountain  peak,  but  with  a  narrow 
base.  Northfield  rejoices  in  a  lofty  peak,  but  maintains 
as  well,  a  broad  foundation.  The  High  Church  Bishop  and 
the  unordained  rescue  worker,  speak  from  the  same  platform, 
within  the  same  hour,  and  every  man  who  accepts  the  great 
cardinal  truths  of  evangelical  Christianity  is  ui)on  a  level  there. 
Northfield  has  been  the  beneficiary  of  many  thinkers  and  lead- 
ers who  owe  their  all  to  Keswick  as  the  Pentecost  of  their  lives. 
But  Northfield,  in  breadth,  scope  and  catholicity  far  surpasses 
the  English  conference.  Here  every  revealed  truth  is  al- 
lowed emphasis  in  due  proportion,  and  every  well  tested 
method  of  practical  work  is  proclaimed  to  eager  audiences. 
Another  characteristic  is  Unity  in  Diversity. 

What  keen  ear  has  ever  detected  a  speaker's  sectarian 
affinity  at  Northfield?  There,  as  nowhere  else,  is  emphasized 
the  sometimes  forgotten  aphorism,  "The  things  in  which  we 
agree  are  more  than  the  things  in  which  we  differ."  There 
we  behold  in  living  fact  union  in  Christ  for  the  salvation  of  the 
world  out  of  Christ.  But  it  is  the  unity  not  of  sameness  but 
of  diversity.  The  unity  not  of  the  company  of  musicians  all 
playing  the  same  instrument,  but  the  unity  of  the  many  instru- 
ments, blended  into  a  perfect  harmony,  complete  and  melo- 
dious, as  mere  sameness  can  never  be.  The  August  confer- 
ence is  a  fine  modern  sj^ecimen  of  a  great  voluntary  Ecumeni- 
cal Council,  composed  of  representatives  from  every  branch 
of  the  church  universal,  all  pressing  across  denominational 
fences  in  order  to  stand  side  by  side,  whilst  with  one  heart  and 
voice  they  proclaim  their  credo:  "One  Lord,  one  faith,  one 
baptism;  one  God  and  Eather  of  all,  who  is  above  all  and 
through  all,  and  in  you  all." 

Another  characteristic  interesting  to  note  is,  Northfield 
sanity  and  l)alance.  The  hobbyist  has  never  gotten  a  hearing 
for  his  hobby  there.     Emotionalism,  fanaticism,  asceticism,  or 


THE    NORTHFIELD    CONFERENCE.  259 

sinless  perfection,  has  never  gained  the  platform  nor  been  per- 
mitted to  find  expression  in  the  audience.  The  deeper 
truths  of  the  Bible,  concerning  our  Lord's  second  coming,  and 
the  baptism  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  the  possibility  and  duty  of 
living  a  loyal,  victorious  and  fervent-filled  life  have  had  full 
and  free  expression  and  emphasis,  but  never  the  extravagant 
and  illogical  deductions  which  ill  balanced  minds  may  deduce 
therefrom.  Mr.  Moody  was  himself  always  sane,  well-balanced 
and  wholesome,so  must  everything  be  of  which  he  had  control. 

Practicality  was  another  striking  characteristic  of  North- 
field.  The  name  Christian  Workers'  Conference,  was  no 
meaningless  and  inappropriate  title  for  the  chief  summer  gath- 
ering. Its  purpose  was,  in  every  possible  way  to  help  feeble 
workers  to  become  strong  and  efficient.  Christian  workers 
who  are  masters  of  their  Bible  and  having  the  ability  to  apply 
it  to  life  and  duty,  have  the  platform  and  the  welcome  there.  A 
formal  sermon,  of  rigid  homiletical  form,  however  excellent, 
or  the  speculative  thesis  is  in  little  demand  or  scarcely  toler- 
ated. One  of  the  greatest  living  scholars  read  two  learned 
essays  on  successive  days,  and  they  were  flat  failures,  on  those 
occasions  and  in  that  atmosphere.  But  men  like  Dr.  Gordon 
or  Sidney  A.  Selwyn,  of  Bournemouth,  England,  with  ade- 
quate scholarship  and  strong  unction  who  can  grasp  the  great 
truth  or  principle  of  God's  word,  and  with  apt  illustration  and 
skilled  force  apply  it,  to  the  mind,  heart  and  conscience  of  the 
auditors,  is  in  constant  demand.  The  unappreciative  visitor 
has  more  than  once  called  Northfield  a  spiritual  sanitarium 
where  everyone  is  kept  busy  counting  his  own  pulse  and  diag- 
nosing his  own  moral  ailments;  but  no  impression  could  be 
more  inaccurate.  Despite  the  tendency  to  introspection,  yet 
the  balance  is  always  maintained  by  an  alert  practicability. 
Northfield  has  ever  emphasized  and  only  tolerated  that  truth 
which  can  be  on  the  instant  transmuted  into  experience  and 
action. 

It  is  not  a  hospital,  but  a  spiritual  store  house  where  new 


26o  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

supplies  can  be  grained  for  the  long  and  weary  journeys  in 
paths  of  duty  which  shall  lie  before  us.  The  interests  of  the 
inner  man  are  made  supreme,  because  they  are  supreme,  and 
are  essential  to  all  soul  vigor  and  outward  accomplishment. 
And  whilst  subjective  themes  have  received  a  very  full  share 
of  attention,  they  have  been  always  balanced  and  propor- 
tioned by  consideration  of  the  outward  interests  of  the  Mas- 
ter's kingdom. 

At  a  missionary  meeting  during  the  August  Conference  of 
1895,  thirty-five  missionaries,  representing  every  field  of  the 
wide  world,  were  on  the  platform,  and  pleaded  for  the  interest 
of  the  kingdom  of  Christ  to  the  ends  of  the  earth.  What  in- 
spiration to  renewed  devotion  and  heroism  in  that  scene! 
Those  thirty-five  heroes  of  the  cross  had  been  doing  some- 
thing more  than  feeling  their  spiritual  pulse  for  the  last  quar- 
ter of  a  century.  Every  phase  of  applied  Christianity  is  fully 
and  strongly  presented  at  Northfield,  and  the  personal  impetus 
which  the  visitor  received  from  all  the  surroundings  and  from 
Mr.  Moody  himself,  whose  life  achievement  has  been  beyond 
that  of  any  other  man,  to  carry  the  gospel  to  those  who  are 
unable,  or  unwilling  to  receive  it,  is  the  most  irresistible  influ- 
ence of  the  whole  convention. 

A  last  striking  trait  of  Northfield  in  its  conference  work,  is 
its  spiritual  power.  As  the  tonic  breezes  of  the  mountains 
to  the  fevered  brow,  so  are  the  spiritual  forces  at  Northfield 
felt  at  once.  The  least  earnest  or  sensitive  nature  cannot  re- 
main long  at  the  conference  without  spiritual  impressions  of 
the  most  decided  kind.  If  really  obdurate  or  calloused  in 
heart  he  will  go  away  to  criticise  or  to  scoff.  But  if  he  remain 
he  will  soon  realize  the  softening  influences  of  the  place,  are 
affecting  his  mind  and  heart,  his  conscience  and  his  will.  And 
if  he  tarry  longer  the  vision  of  self  deficiency,  of  hitherto  un- 
realized sin,  will  break  the  proud  nature  into  sorrow  and 
shame,  and  he  will  find  himself  yearning  after  and  seeking  for 
a  closer  walk  with  Christ. 


THE   NORTHFIELD   CONFERENCE.  261 

If  you  ask  what  have  been  the  results  of  the  Northfield  Con- 
ferences, we  must  answer,  our  Omniscient  Heavenly  Father 
alone  knows  them.  These  conferences  are  now  recognized 
throughout  Christendom  as  one  of  the  most  influential  forces 
in  the  world  for  the  development  of  Christian  life  and  service. 
Thousands  have  attended  them  to  learn,  to  know  and  love  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  as  they  never  did  before;  have  been  enabled 
there  to  give  themselves  to  Him  in  a  complete  and  irreversible 
surrender,  and  to  go  forward  to  the  glory  of  God  in  the  power 
of  the  Holy  Spirit,  in  a  fulness  that  without  this  experience 
and  this  blessing  at  Northfield  had  been  quite  impossible.  They 
have  found  this  place  to  be  to  them  not  merely  another  Bethel, 
where  vows  to  God  have  been  often  made,  and  as  often  broken 
but  a  veritable  Penuel,  where  vows  made  have  henceforth 
been  kept,  because  here  we  have  seen  God  face  to  face,  and 
through  that  crowning  vision,  there  has  come  to  us  a  new 
name  and  a  new  nature. 

Happy  and  blessed  days  with  Moody  at  Northfield!  They 
can  never  be  relived!  But  as  the  dying  worker  for  God  said 
of  himself,  "Moody  is  not  dead!  He  shall  still  Hve,"  not  a  vis- 
ible personality,  but  a  potential  influence,  and  because  of  his 
absence,  the  Spirit  of  God  will  all  the  more  tenderly  and  suf- 
ficiently prosper  and  bless  these  Christian  enterprises  in  com- 
ing days,  and  enable  them  all  the  more  fully  to  fulfil  their  mis- 
sion of  bringing  light  and  grace  to  the  hungry,  aspiring  Chris- 
tians  of  our  land,  who  pray  that  the  beauty  of  the  Lord  our 
God,  may  be  upon  them,  and  that  the  work  of  their  hands  may 
be  established  to  His  glory  and  to  the  salvation  of  the  whole 
world.  The  deepest  longing  and  the  loudest  cry  of  the  church 
of  the  present  age  is  for  a  more  Christ  like  character  and  for 
victory  over  self  and  sin,  and  for  abounding  fruit  in  the  sal- 
vation of  other  souls.  The  Northfield  Conferences  are  one  of 
God's  most  important  answers  to  this  earnest  and  noble  aspir- 
ation. For  all  that  they  have  done,  and  shall  do,  praise  be  unto 
the  Father,  Son  and  Holy  Spirit,  world  without  end,  Amen. 


Mount  Hermon. 

F  we  could  trace  some  of  tlie  mightiest  streams  of  hu- 
man activity  and  enterprise  up  to  their  most  distant 
sources,  they  might  be  found  to  issue  from  very  small 
beginnings;  as  the  F'ather  of  Waters  takes  its  rise 
from  the  small  lakes  of  Minnesota,  or  in  the  far  away 
springs  and  glaciers  of  Yellowstone  Park.  As  we  gaze  with 
admiration  on  the  splendid  groups  of  buildings  at  Northfield 
and  on  Mount  Hermon,  we  can  scarcely  realize  that  many  of 
them  rose  up  from  their  foundations  under  the  magic  power 
of  song,  as  the  walls  of  Thebes  arose  under  the  strains  of 
Amphion's  lyre.  Yet  such  is  the  case.  The  fact  is,  that  no 
publisher  would  agree  to  publish 

GOSPEL  HYMNS, 
a  small  hymn  book  that  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  wished 
to  have  printed  for  use  in  their  meetings  in  Scotland  and  Eng- 
land, and  Mr.  Moody  was  compelled  to  publish  it  at  his  own 
expense.  The  copyright  of  that  small  book  has  proved  itself 
an  unfailing  source  of  supply  like  the  springs  of  the  Jordan. 

Between  his  meetings  at  Birmingham  and  London,  Mr. 
Moody  ran  up  to  meet  with  some  twelve  hundred  pastors  who 
had  responded  to  his  invitation  to  meet  in  conference  before 
beginning  their  great  London  campaign.  Desiring  to  have 
all  misapprehensions  concerning  himself  and  Mr.  Sankey  re- 
moved, he  invited  them  to  ask  him  any  questions  they  de- 
sired. For  a  half  hour  or  more,  questions,  wise  and  other- 
wise, pertinent  and  impertinent,  were  almost  flung  at  him. 
How  was  Mr.  Moody  paid?  Was  Mr.  Sankey  peddling 
American  organs?  What  about  the  copyright  of  the  singing 
books?  etc.  etc. 

Mr.  Moody  settled  these  questions  in  his  decisive  way.  He 
informed  them  that  he  had  money  enough  for  all  his  personal 


MOUNT  HERMON.  263 

expenses,  and  did  not  ask  the  city  of  London  for  a  penny,  and 
that  Mr.  Sankey  was  not  selHng  organs.  Then  to  remove 
from  the  revival  even  the  least  flavor  of  speculation,  he  im- 
mediately resigned  into  the  hands  of  Mr.  Mathieson,  an  emi- 
nent London  banker,  all  right  and  title  to  the  profits  of  the 
books  in  question.  The  amount  of  royalty  was  then  consid- 
erably over  five  thousand  pounds.  Mr.  Moody  declined  to 
receive  it.  Mr.  Mathieson  then  said:  "This  is  American  mon- 
ey and  we  can  not  keep  it  here,"  and  proposed  to  send  it  to 
the  United  States  to  aid  the  cause  of  Christ  in  this  land. 
Among  the  names  mentioned  by  Mr.  Moody  was  that  of  Mr. 
George  H.  Stuart,  to  whom  the  draft  was  accordingly  sent  and 
it  was  applied  as  we  have  already  stated,  to  aid  in  paying  ofT 
the  debt  on  the  Chicago  Avenue  Church.  Soon  after  Mr, 
Moody's  return  to  America  he  invited  J\Ir.  Farwell  of  Chica- 
go, Mr.  Doyde  of  New  York  and  Mr.  Stuart  of  Philadelphia, 
to  meet  him  in  Northfield,  and  asked  them  to  act  as  trustees 
for  the  royalty  fund  of  the  hymn  books  about  to  be  published 
by  Biglow  &  Main,  and  to  dispose  of  that  fund  for  Christian 
work  disconnected  with  any  church  use.  They  accepted  the 
trust,  which  in  a  few  years  amounted  to  over  three  hundred 
thousand  dollars,  and  it  was  out  of  this  fund  that  the  corner- 
stone of  Mr.  Moody's  magnificent  educational  work  at 
Northfield  and  Mount  Hermon  was  laid. 

Scarcely  was  the  school  work  at  Northfield  well  under  way 
and  its  success  assured,  than  the  same  reasons  which  had 
wrought  so  powerfully  with  Mr.  Moody  in  behalf  of  the  Sem- 
inary, began  to  appeal  with  equal  cogency  for  the  establish- 
ment of 

A  SCHOOL  FOR  BOYS. 

With  marvelous  sagacity  and  foresight,  and  with  the  in- 
stinct of  genius,  Mr.  Aloody  mapped  out  in  his  mind  a  most 
happy  combination  of  manual  labor  and  mental  toil  in  the  edu- 
cation of  young  men.  The  first  thing  they  needed  was  a  farm 
within  easy  access  of  Northfield,  and  yet  at  some  distance 


264  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

from  town.  Providentially  at  just  that  time  a  farm  was  about 
to  pass  under  the  hammer,  not  an  acre  of  which  could  have 
been  bought  for  love  or  money  at  any  time  during  the  pre- 
vious fifty  years.  It  was  located  across  the  river  from  North- 
field,  and  about  four  miles  away,  contained  four  hundred  acres 
of  land,  and  was  by  far  the  finest  situation  to  be  found  in  all 
that  ^region.  The  whole  tract  was  bought  in  1881  for  $12,500 
— the  timber  alone  being  worth  more  than  half  the  purchase 
price — and  it  was  christened  Mount  Hermon. 

Mr.  Hiram  Camp,  the  gentleman  wdio  wrote  his  check  for 
$25,000,  with  which  the  farm  was  bought  and  the  school  com- 
menced, has  often  since  declared  that  no  act  of  his  life  ever 
yielded  him  greater  dividends  of  happiness.  "There's  no  joy 
like  the  joy  of  giving."  Quite  a  different  sentiment  this,  from 
the  one  a  Standard  Oil  magnate  once  uttered  in  the  presence 
of  the  writer,  when  he  said,  "It's  lots  of  fun  to  make  money."  I 
believe  the  great  wealth  which  this  multi-millionaire  kept  as 
long  as  he  could — even  to  the  edge  of  his  grave — gave  him  far 
less  happiness  than  the  former  gentleman  received  from  the 
$25,000  he  gave  away. 

The  situation  of  Mount  Hermon  is  more  commanding  than 
that  of  the  Seminary  buildings,  and  the  surrounding  scenery 
more  rugged  and  picturesque.  At  first  the  old  farm  houses 
found  upon  the  place  were  utilized  as  dormitories,  and  when 
enlargement  was  necessary  it  was  deemed  best  to  continue 

THE  FAMILY  SYSTEM. 

Cottages  accordingly  were  erected  in  which  a  large  number 
of  boys  were  divided  into  groups  of  not  more  than  twenty  in 
each  house  under  the  care  of  matrons.  This  method  of  caring 
for  the  boys  was  modified  in  1885  by  raising  the  age  of  admis- 
sion to  sixteen,  a  change  involving  the  whole  scope  of  the 
school.  Experience  has  proved  that  results  would  be  more 
satisfactory  if  the  boys  were  of  sufficient  age  to  have  formed 
definite  purposes  in  life. 


MOUNT  HERMON.  265 

MR.  MOODY'S  CONCEPTION 

of  the  Mount  Hermon  School  was  bed-rocked  upon  his  own 
experience  of  the  deficiency  of  his  education,  and  he  was  de- 
termined that  no  worthy  young  man  should  grow  up  without 
the  opportunity  of  making  out  of  himself  the  very  best  of 
which  he  was  capable.  His  ideal  of  Mount  Hermon  was  ab- 
solutely devoid  of  sentiment  and  intensely  practical.  The 
school  was  founded  for  young  men  of  good  physical  and  men- 
tal stufif,  not  for  weaklings.  It  was  in  no  sense  to  be  a  re- 
formatory school.  Lazy,  ignorant  or  vicious  boys  are  not 
received  knowingly.  Character  and  capacity  rather  than 
scholarship  are  insisted  upon.  Careful  scrutiny  of  the  ante- 
cedents of  each  applicant  has  been  directed  toward  making  the 
students  of  Mount  Hermon  a  body  of  picked  young  men. 

In  order  to  meet  the  needs  of  that  large  class  of  young 
men  who  are  earnest  and  consecrated,  but  have  not  the  means 
to  secure  an  education  at  full  cost,  the  price  for  board  and  tui- 
tion at  Mount  Hermon  has  been  fixed  at  $100  a  year.  To  put 
the  cost  at  this  very  low  figure  the  students  are  required  to  en- 
gage in  some  form  of  useful  labor,  two  or  three  hours  a  day, 
on  the  farm,  in  the  shops,  in  the  laundry,  and  in  care  taking  of 
the  buildings.  All  the  housework  is  performed  by  the  stu- 
dents themselves.  In  the  farm  especially  the  students  acquire 
practical  knowledge  of  sowing  and  reaping,  the  care  of  do- 
mestic animals,  and  everything  pertaining  to  agriculture.  Be- 
sides the  economy  thus  effected,  the  health  of  the  students  is 
maintained  in  fullest  vigor.  The  practical  knowledge  of 
agriculture  adds  an  element  of  independence  to  the  equipment 
of  the  student,  furnishing  him  with  the  consciousness  that  if 
he  should  turn  out  a  poor  preacher  he  migh't  yet  become  a 
good  farmer. 

THE  MORAL  VALUE  OF  WORK 

cannot  be  overestimated.  The  men  of  moral  genius  and  power 
in  all  ages  have  been  workers.     The  patriarchs  who  put  their 


266  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

stamp  most  deeply  upon  the  moral  history,  the  relii^ious  de- 
velopment, of  the  most  remarkal)le  race  of  all  time,  tended 
their  own  flocks. 

Moses,  the  earliest  and  greatest  of  all  moral  legislators,  kept 
the  Hocks  of  Jethro  for  forty  years  in  the  land  of  Midian. 
David,  the  immortal  poet,  the  inspired  prophet,  the  warrior 
king",  was  in  training  for  his  career  of  greatness  when  as  a 
shepherd  lad  he  roamed  the  plains  of  Bethlehem.  Elisha  was 
but  a  farmer's  son,  ploughing  in  the  field  when  Elijah  called 
him  to  the  prophetic  office,  yet  upon  his  youthful  shoulders 
fell  the  mantle  of  the  ascending  prophet  and  upon  his  soul  a 
double  portion  of  his  master's  spirit.  John  the  Baptist,  than 
whom  had  never  a  greater  been  born  of  woman,  the  great 
preacher  of  repentance,  the  forerunner  of  the  Messiah,  was 
not  clothed  in  soft  raiment,  neither  dwelt  in  kings'  houses. 

The  first  founders  of  Christianity  were  themselves  working 
men.  Peter  and  Andrew  were  fishing  on  the  lake,  James  and 
John  were  mending  their  nets,  when  summoned  to  become 
disciples  of  the  Son  of  Man  and  the  founders  of  the  Christian 
church.  And  Paul,  the  mightiest  moral  force  among  them 
all,  the  theologian,  philosopher,  missionary  hero,  and  martyr, 
also  illustrates  the  value  of  work,  for  while  he  was  an  apostle, 
his  own  hands  ministered  to  his  necessities,  for  by  occupation 
he  was  a  tent  maker.  Yet,  these  working  men  were  they  who 
triumphed  over  the  bitter  hatred  of  the  Jew,  and  the  en- 
trenched heathenism  of  the  Gentiles,  over  the  schools  of  phil- 
osophy and  the  palaces  of  the  Caesars;  who  turned  the  world 
upside  down  and  gave  a  new  religious  history  to  mankind. 

We  may  advance  a  step  nearer,  yet  must  wc  reverently 
pause  before  a  humble  cottage  door,  for  the  ground  whereon 
we  tread  is  holy.  Jesus  of  Nazareth  was  a  humble  working 
man.  Even  those  who  question  Ilis  deity  unite  in  exalting 
Him  unapproachably  above  all  other  men  in  moral  beauty  and 
genius.  The  greater  part  of  His  life  was  spent  in  lowly  toil. 
He  knew  what  was  in  man.     He  knew  the  untold  worth  of 


MOUNT  HERMON.  267 

work  to  man's  moral  and  religious  nature.  He  knew  its  val- 
ue to  His  own  human  nature  in  fitting  Him  for  His  public 
ministry.  Behold  the  strange,  yet  sublime  spectacle,  the  Son 
of  God  putting  the  royal  stamp  of  dignity  on  the  life  of  a 
working  man,  and  while  other  conditions  were  open  to  His 
choice,  content  for  years  to  eat  His  bread  in  the  sweat  of  His 
face.  Do  not  such  long  years  of  patient,  submissive  work  be- 
speak the  infinite  worth  of  toil  in  the  evolution  of  the  highest 
spiritual  character? 

If  labor  is  so  vitally  connected  with  virtue,  the  reason  for 
it  must  lie  in  the  very  nature  of  man.  There  must  be  some 
natural,  physical  reason  for  it.  The  most  recent  scientific  in- 
vestigations of  the  relations  existing  between  brain  and  body, 
show  that  there  is  a  direct  connection  between  the  will  and 
the  brain,  and  through  it  with  the  muscular  system.  Flabby 
muscles  and  w^eak  will  have  a  relation  to  each  other  of  cause 
and  effect.  The  discovery  of  motor  centers  in  tlie  brain  has 
revolutionized  scientific  thought  on  the  subject  of  morals  and 
religion.  It  has  proven  that  moral  training  cannot  ignore  the 
body,  and  that  physical  training  which  develops  the  motor 
centers  of  the  brain  at  the  same  time  lays  the  basis  of  strength 
of  will,  and  force  of  character.  Here  then,  you  have  a  moral 
ground,  the  highest  possible  ground,  for  manual  training,  and 
for  industrial  schools. 

It  is  no  curse,  therefore,  but  a  great  blessing  for  a  youth  to 
be  put  early  under  the  lash  of  necessity,  and  the  compulsion 
of  toil.  Work  not  only  puts  red  corpuscles  into  the  blood,  but 
puts  iron  into  the  will,  and  invigorates  moral  character.  It 
not  only  induces  industrious  habits,  endues  the  youth  with 
practical  talent, equips  with  additional  resources,reinforces  the 
soul  on  the  side  of  independence,  but,  above  all.  it  gives  that 
svnipathy  with  working  men  which  can  not  be  counterfeited, 
which  puts  a  man  "en  rapport"  with  the  masses,  without  which' 
no  man  can  be  a  preacher,  or  orator,  or  tribune  of  the  people 
in  the  highest  sense. 


268  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

It  was  this  fact  in  the  hfe  of  Mr.  Moody — that  he  was  him- 
self a  lad  upon  the  farm — that  he  started  with  his  feet  firmly  on 
the  earth,  that  his  whole  early  life  was  one  of  stern  realism — 
which  enabled  him  to  become  the  greatest  tribune  to  the 
masses  in  this  century,  and  to  report  to  every  man  his  own 
moral  and  spiritual  consciousness,  because  he  himself  had 
gone  through  all  the  stratas  of  human  experience. 

THE  FOUNDATION 

of  Mount  Hermon  on  an  industrial  basis  was,  consequently, 
the  natural  outgrowth  of  Mr.  Moody's  own  life.  It  was  his 
desire  not  to  educate  young  men  away  from  their  own  sphere, 
but  to  teach  them  to  find  it,  and  to  train  them  to  meet  exist- 
ing modern  conditions.  Tlie  wisdom  of  this  foundation  has 
been  approved  by  the  experience  of  many  years.  The  quality 
of  the  student  body  has  been  steadily  rising.  Amid  such  a 
general  air  of  downright  earnestness  the  lazy  pupil  is  soon  dis- 
placed, and  his  room  is  filled  by  another.  A  process  of  na- 
tural selection  has  gone  forward,  and  there  has  been  a  survi- 
val of  the  fittest.  The  result  is  a  student  body  composed 
largely  of  sifted  manhood. 

THE  MORAL  AND  RELIGIOUS  TONE 

of  the  school  is  of  the  very  highest,  as  is  shown  by  the  fre- 
quent report  that  all  the  members  of  the  two  upper  classes  are 
professing  Christians.  One  can  never  overestimate  the  effect 
which  the  mere  breathing  of  a  spiritual  atmosphere  has  upon 
a  lad  as  he  daily  meets  with  devoted  teachers  in  the  classroom. 
Then  comes  the  more  personal  contact,  in  study,  work,  or  play 
with  earnest,  loving  fellow  students,  to  some  one  of  whom  he 
may  be  drawn  to  open  the  inner  depths  of  his  soul. 

All  these  spiritual  forces  at  Mount  Hermon  seem  to  be 
gathered  up  in  the 

YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION, 

into  one  great  center  and  mainspring  of  religious  life,  and  zeal 


MOUNT  HERMON.  269 

and  activity.  This  association  has  the  largest  membership  to 
be  found  in  any  school  in  America.  Here  is  fostered  under 
zealous  yet  judicious  teachers  and  students  a  wholesome  and 
well-rounded  Christian  character.  From  this  source  of  power 
and  wisdom  the  spiritual  energies  of  the  young  men  flow  forth 
into  channels  of  personal  usefulness. 

Ten  or  a  dozen  groups  of  young  men  find  their  way  up  and 
down  the  river  or  over  the  hills  into  remote  districts  wherever 
a  school  house  may  be  found,  or  the  open  door  of  a  farm- 
house. It  may  be  only  a  small  prayer  meeting  that  is  held, 
with  a  handful  of  people  to  share  in  it.  It  may  be  that  a 
Sabbath  School  is  maintained,  and  sometimes  the  gospel  may 
be  preached  in  a  simple,  earnest  manner.  But  whatever  the 
form  of  service  rendered,  the  great  value  of  all  such  work  is 
to  bring  a  warm  hearted  Christian  student  into  a  personal 
contact  with  precious  souls  whom  he  may  influence  with  all 
the  spiritual  force  that  is  in  him.  Here  many  a  hidden  talent 
has  been  unearthed  and  the  blessed  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
may  have  crowned  a  student's  labors  with  such  success  as  to 
fire  his  heart  with  a  great  desire  to  enter  the  ministry  of  the 
gospel.  For  all  such  young  men  the  full  classical  course  is 
sufficient  to  pass  them  into  college.  The  record  which  such 
students  have  made  at  Yale,  Princeton,  Amherst,  Williams, 
for  high  scholarship,  fine  Christian  character,  for  adaptability 
to  their  work,  has  been,  and  is  to-day,  the  very  highest  testi- 
mony to  the  wise,  sound,  thorough,  practical  training  and  the 
lofty  enthusiasm  of  soul  which  Mount  Hermon  inspires  and 
imparts  to  the  great  body  of  students  which  are  privileged  to 
enjoy  the  advantages  there  afforded. 

More  than  two  thousand  young  men  have  passed  through 
the  halls  of  Alount  Hermon  during  the  last  eighteen  years. 

Resides  the  price  of  board  and  tuition  received,  $100  per 
student,  it  costs  another  $100  each  to  maintain  the  school. 
To  meet  this  great  deficit  at  Mount  Hermon  and  an  almost 
equal  one  at  the  Seminary,  in  all  about  $80,000  per  annum, 


270  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

the  royalty  fund  from  the  sale  of  Gospel  Hymns  has  been  re- 
ligiously set  aside,  and  is  divided  equally  between  them. 

At  present  this  fund  meets  nearly  one  half  the  deficit.  The 
balance  must  be  made  up  by  personal  solicitation,  or  by  the 
still  greater  generosity  of  its  long-time  friends. 

For  many  years  it  had  been 

MR.  MOODY'S  GREATEST  CARE 

to  secure  the  large  sums  needed  to  maintain  the  Bible  Insti- 
tute, Northfield  Seminary,  and  the  Mount  Hermon  School  for 
boys.  To  realize  faintly  the  magnitude  of  his  labors  it  is  only 
necessary  to  state  that  an  endowment  of  $3,000,000  will  be 
needed  to  provide  the  necessary  income  to  carry  on  these 
great  institutions  and  equip  them  still  more  thoroughly  for 
the  great  work  they  are  doing.  We  hope  this  vast  sum  may 
be  speedily  secured — we  know  of  no  charity  in  this  country 
more  worthy — that  these  memorials  of  Mr.  Moody's  devo- 
tion to  the  cause  of  Christian  education  may  be  placed  upon 
the  most  enduring  of  earthly  foundations. 


The  World's  Fair  Campaign. 

OLUMBUS  discovered  America  in  1492.  In  1892 
Chicago  was  discovered  by  the  rest  of  the  world 
as  a  city  with  upward  of  a  milHon  people,  pos- 
sessed with  a  wonderful  power  of  doing  great 
things,  fitly  expressed  in  her  laconic  motto,  "I 
will."  While  the  industrial  and  commercial  world  were  pre- 
paring for  the  grandest  exposition  ever  created,  Chicago  was 
raising  millions  of  money  for  the  erection  of  the  White  City 
by  the  Sea,  which  arose  as  if  by  magic  on  the  shores  of  Lake 
Michigan,  fairer  and  more  beautiful,  at  least  more  wonder- 
ful, than  ever  Venice  appeared  in  the  days  of  her  highest 
splendor.  At  the  same  time,  Dr.  John  Henry  Barrows  was 
conceiving  and  arranging  for  the  most  remarkable  gathering 
of  devout  men  from  the  four  quarters  of  the  globe,  the  very 
ends  of  the  earth,  ever  witnessed  since  devout  Jews  from 
every  nation  under  the  sun  went  up  to  Jerusalem  to  worship 
at  the  great  feast  of  Pentecost. 

At  this  Parliament  of  Religions,  representative  men  from 
nearly  all  the  larger  protestant  sects  of  Christendom,  cardi- 
nals and  prelates,  Syrian  priest  and  Greek  patriarch,  leaders 
of  modern  religious  thought  in  India,  Buddhist  priests  and 
Brahmins,  orange-robed  monks  and  devotees,  Confucian 
philosopher,  the  high  priest  of  the  ancient  Shinto  sect  of 
Japan,  Jew  and  Gentile,  Greek  and  Roman,  Pagan  and  Bar- 
barian were  to  gather  in  most  solemn  conclave. 

Meet  for  what?  Not  to  discuss  politics,  not  to  devise  plans 
for  selfish  or  national  aggrandizement,  nor  even  primarily  to 
enjoy  travel  to  lands  new  and  strange,  but  simply,  grandly, 
for  this:  To  tell  to  each  other  with  fraternal  regard  and  in- 
terest what  was  the  highest  and  the  best  they  thought  or 
knew  concerning  Duty  and  Destiny;  concerning  Heaven  and 
God. 


272  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

Strangely  enough,  Mr.  Moody  was  the  same  year  circling 
the  globe  on  his  most  extended  and  successful  missionary 
tours  through  the  Orient,  returning  via  Europe.  His  mind 
was  also  on  Chicago.  He  knew  that  millions  of  people  would 
throng  the  World's  Fair  as  the  devotees  of  India  flock  to 
sacred  Benares,  in  order  that  they  might  see  the  glories,  the 
wonders  and  the  beauties  of  the  modern  Venice. 

Mr.  Moody  returned  to  America  under  as  solemn  a  vow 
as  that  which  sent  Paul  up  to  Jerusalem,  a  vow  wrung  from 
his  heart  after  eight  and  forty  hours  wrestling  with  the  angel 
of  God  through  nights  of  terror  more  dreadful  than  Jacob 
ever  dreamed  of.  We  can  yet  remember  the  shiver  of  fear 
and  sympathy  that  ran  through  our  hearts  when  the  daily 
press  depicted  the  anguish  and  fear  with  which  the  passen- 
gers faced  most  imminent  death  while  yet  they  prayed  might- 
ily unto  God  for  his  saving  power.  Mr.  Moody  thus  narrated 
his  experience  throughout  the  hours  of  such  prolonged  an- 
xiety: 

"Just  as  I  was  preparing  to  leave  London  the  last  time  I 
was  there,  I  called  upon  a  celebrated  physician,  who  told  me 
that  my  heart  was  weakening,  that  I  had  to  let  up  on  my 
work,  and  that  I  must  be  more  careful  of  myself.  I  was  go- 
ing home  with  the  thought  that  I  would  not  work  quite  so 
hard;  I  was  on  the  steamer  Spree,  and  when  the  announce- 
ment came  that  the  vessel  was  sinking,  and  we  were  there 
forty-eight  hours  in  a  helpless  condition,  no  one  on  earth 
knows  what  I  passed  through  during  those  hours,  as  I 
thought  that  my  work  was  finished  and  that  I  would  never 
again  have  the  privilege  of  preaching  the  gospel  of  the  Son 
of  God.  And  on  that  dark  night,  the  first  night  of  the  acci- 
dent, I  made  a  vow  that  if  God  would  spare  my  life  and  bring 
me  back  to  America  I  would  come  back  to  Chicago  at  this 
World's  Fair  and  preach  the  gospel  with  all  the  power  that 
He  would  give  me;  and  God  has  enabled  me  to  keep  that  vow 
during  the  past  five  months.     It  seems  as  if  I  went  to  the  very 


THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN.  273 

gates  of  heaven  during  those  forty-eight  hours  on  the  sinking 
ship,  and  God  permitted  me  to  come  back  and  preach  Christ 
a  Httle  longer. 

For  many  months  before  at  Mr.  Moody's  urgent  request  of 
the  churches  abroad,  the  children  of  God  were  offering  un- 
ceasing prayer  for  the  blessing  and  the  power  of  God  to  fall 
upon  them  and  upon  the  city  of  his  devoiion.  Not  only  was 
his  heart  to  be  greatly  comforted  by  the  assurance  of  their 
most  fervent  supplications,  to  be  greatly  helped  throughout 
all  the  summer  by  their  most  generous  contributions,  but  he 
was  also  to  find  from  among  his  many  friends  across  the  sea 
some  of  his  most  ardent,  and  faithful  co-laborers. 

In  our  ministers'  meetings  in  Chicago,  where  I  was  then 
pastor,  and  in  our  churches  generally,  the  coming  of  Mr. 
Moody  and  the  great  evangelistic  campaign  which  was  to 
open  with  the  opening  of  the  World's  Fair,  were  the  topics 
of  frequent  conversation  and  the  blessing  of  God  was  invoked 
with  much  earnest  and  prevailing  prayer. 

The  problems  presented  to  the  church  by  the  vast  popula- 
tion of  Chicago  are  the  most  complex  and  difficult  of  all  with 
which  our  great  cities  are  compelled  to  grapple.  Nowhere 
else  is  the  struggle  between  capital  and  labor  more  intense 
and  bitter.  In  no  other  city  have  the  socialists  and  anar- 
chists secured  such  a  dangerous  foothold.  Only  those  who 
have  faced  such  problems  can  appreciate  the  urgency  of  the 
petitions  which  besought  the  favor  and  the  blessing  of  Al- 
mighty God  upon  the  united,  earnest,  and  aggressive  work 
that  was  to  be  done  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ. 

Before  entering  upon  the  sketch  of  the  great  work  done  by 
Mr.  Moody  in  his  Chicago  campaign,  which  began  and  ended 
with  the  World's  Fair,  a  single  incident  regarding  ^Mr. 
Moody's  attitude  towards  the  Parliament  of  Religions,  may  be 
related,  as  showing  his  remarkable  level-headedness  and  his 
possession  of  a  vast  amount  of  good,  hard,  common  sense. 

When  some  of  the  evangelists  and  ministers  connected  with 
i8 


274  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

the  campaign  seemed  to  feel  that  Jesus  Christ  and  the  gospel 
were  being  beHttled  and  disgraced  by  the  proceedings  at  Col- 
umbus Hall,  they  suggested  that  an  attack  upon  the  parlia- 
ment should  be  made  all  along  the  line.  Mr.  IMoody  was  very 
emphatic  in  his  reply:  "Preach  Christ,  hold  up  Christ.  Let 
*the  Parliament  of  Religions  alone.     Preach  Christ." 

The  views,  impressions,  and  opinions  one  may  have  regard- 
ing any  great  religious  movement  will  depend  largely  upon  the 
stand  point  taken  by  the  beholder.  It  was  our  privilege  to  at- 
tend the  opening  and  closing  meetings  of 

THE  PARLIAMENT  OF  RELIGIONS, 

to  hear  the  first  recital  together,  by  a  vast  throng  of  people 
gathered  from  the  ends  of  the  earth,  of  the  universal  prayer: 
"Our  Father  which  art  in  heaven,"  and  the  grand  Hallelujah 
Chorus  given  at  its  close  by  the  Apollo  Club.  As  that  chorus 
burst  out  in  praise  of  Christ  who  shall  reign  King  of  kings, 
and  Lord  of  lords,  we  could  but  accept  it  as  prophetic  of  the 
hour  when  among  all  the  nations  of  the  earth  "every  knee 
shall  bow  and  every  tongue  confess  that  Jesus  Christ  is  Lord 
to  the  glory  of  God  the  Father." 

We  attended  nearly  all  the  day  sessions  of  the  parliament, 
and  are  persuaded  that  no  address  given  upon  that  platform 
was  received  with  greater  sympathy,  bursting  almost  into  ap- 
plause, than  the  grand  sermon  deUvered  by  B.  Fay  Mills,  on 
"Jesus  Christ,  the  Savior  of  the  World." 

There  was  no  discussion  allowed  at  the  sessions,  but  the 
teachers  of  the  great  ethnic  faiths  of  heathenism  and  of  every 
form  of  faith  that  recognizes  God  or  Christ  in  Christendom 
came  together  to  tell  the  best  they  knew  or  hoped  for  con- 
cerning 

GOD,  AND  DUTY,  AND  DESTINY. 

To  those  questions  which  Christianity  might  justly  ask  of 
heathenism,  as  represented  by  Confucian  philosopher,  Bud- 
dhist priest,  Flindoo  monk,  or  Shinto  High  Priest,  there  was 


THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN.  275 

no  reply.     There  can  be  no  reply  to  such  questions  as  these: 

Whom  can  you  place  beside  the  incomparable  Jesus?  Does 
not  the  "Light  of  Asia"  fade  away  before  the  "Light  of  the 
World?"  Where  is  your  nobler  love,  your  grander  purpose, 
your  greater  sacrifice?  Where  is  your  more  spotless  Lamb, 
your  more  precious  blood,  your  more  complete  salvation? 
Where  is  there  such  propitiation  for  sin,  such  satisfaction  for 
the  conscience,  such  peace  for  the  soul?  Where  can  you  find 
a  softer  pillow  for  the  dying  head,  a  more  certain  hope  of  a 
glorious  resurrection  for  the  body  and  for  the  immortaUty  of 
the  soul? 

Tell  us,  since  the  star  glittered  over  Bethlehem's  plains,  has 
any  one  but  Jesus  arisen  to  claim  "the  heathen  for  his  inheri- 
tance and  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth  for  his  possession?"' 

The  fact  that  the  ignorance,  the  superstition,  the  Impotence 
of  heathenism  were,  by  those  representative  teachers  from  the 
Orient,  confessed  by  their  silence,  is,  in  our  opinion,  an  all 
sufficient  justification  for  the  convocation  of  that  parliament. 
We  have  heard  from  their  own  lips  that  they  know  nothing  of 
any  Savior  from  sin,  and  that  they  have  no  sure  hope  of 
any  personal  immortality. 

During  the  six  months  the  World's  Fair  was  to  remain 
open,  the  gospel,  the  good  tidings  of  the  grace  of  God,  was  to 
be  proclaimed  to  the  thousands,  the  tens  of  thousands,  the 
hundreds  of  thousands  coming  and  going  to  the  White  City 
by  the  Sea;  and  to  other  hundreds  of  thousands  living  in  that 
great,  bustling,  driving  city  of  Chicago. 

Mr.  Moody  had  come  to  the  conviction  that  God  wanted 
that  work  done.  If  so,  it  ought  to  be  done,  and  it  was  done. 
For  months  before  the  opening  of  the  World's  Fair  the  min- 
isters of  the  city  had  been  earnestly  and  prayerfully  consider- 
ing the  problems  before  them.  The  most  of  them  decided  to 
remain  in  the  city  all  summer.  Dr.  E.  P.  Goodwin,  of  the 
First  Congregational  Church,  did  so  for  the  first  time  in  twen- 
ty-six years.  Most  of  the  churches  were  thronged  all  summer. 


276  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

Many  people  were  glad  of  the  rest  of  the  Sabbath  day.  An 
amusing  incident  occurred  at  Plymouth  Church  one  morning, 
where  the  crowd  who  wanted  to  hear  the  eloquent  Dr.  Gun- 
saulus  surged  far  out  into  the  street.  One  man  was  elbowing 
his  way  vigorously  to  the  door  regardless  of  other  people's 
comfort,  and  to  their  protests  he  vehemently  replied:  "I  came 
to  Chicago  to  see  the  World's  Fair,  and  Buffalo  Bill's  Wild 
West  Show  and  to  hear  Dr.  Gunsaulus,  and  I  must  get  in." 
And  he  did. 

Before  Mr.  Moody  left  his  home  for  Chicago  he  had  gath- 
ered the  students  and  teachers  of  Northfield  and  Mt.  Hermon 
about  him  at  six  o'clock  in  the  morning,  to  seek  the 
anointing  of  the  Holy  Spirit  and  to  pray  for  the  work  to  come. 
"If  you  think  anything  of  me,"  said  he,  with  choking  voice,  "if 
you  have  any  regard  for  me,  if  you  love  me,  pray  for  me  that 
God  may  anoint  me  for  the  work  in  Chicago.  I  want  to  be 
filled  with  the  spirit,  that  I  may  preach  the  gospel  as  I  never 
preached  it  before.  We  want  to  see  the  salvation  of  God  as 
we  have  never  seen  it  before."     It  may  truly  be  said  that  it  was 

A  CAMPAIGN  OF  PRAYER. 

The  inauguration  of  the  campaign,  as  was  most  fitting,  was 
at  the  Chicago  Avenue  Church,  better  known  as  Moody's 
Church.  The  spacious  audience  room  will  seat  nearly  twenty- 
five  hundred  people,  and  the  lecture  rooms  on  the  first  floor 
nearly  as  many  more.  Morning,  afternoon  and  evening  the 
great  church  was  thronged  to  hear  Mr.  Moody.  On  the  plat- 
form were  seated  the  teachers  of  the  Institute,  several  minis- 
ters and  a  number  of  singers.  During  the  week  there  were 
special  services  in  the  church  for  prayer  and  praise.  On  the 
second  Sabbath  Mr.  Moody  preached  again,  both  morning 
and  evening.  The  workers  were  gathering,  the  plans  matur- 
ing for  a  wide-spreading  work  of  evangelization  throughout 
the  city. 

Chicago  was  and  is,  an  open  city  in  many  respects.    Thea- 


The  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN.  2^ 

tres  and  music  halls  are  open  on  Sunday,  as  usual.  IMany  of 
the  smaller  shops  and  stores  ditto,  while  its  seven  thousand 
saloons,  with  bhnds  drawn  down,  leave  their  doors  on  the 
latch.  But  one  must  remember  that  since  the  great  fire  in 
1871  more  than  one  million  people  have  been  added  to  her 
population.  Of  that  immense  multitude  less  than  one-fourth 
are  Americans.  There  are  at  least  one  hundred  thousand 
more  Germans  than  Americans,  and  many  practically  foreign 
cities  occupy  some  of  the  district.  This  is  notably  true  in  a 
South  east  district,  where  above  25,000  Bohemians  live  with 
their  own  theatres,  churches,  banks  and  newspapers  and  with 
only  two  protestant  missions  of  any  strength  working  among 
them.  Yet  I  believe  there  is  no  city  in  the  United  States 
where  the  evangelical  churches  of  various  creeds  and  tongues 
are  putting  forth  greater  energies,  or  with  better  results  than 
in  this  same  Chicago.  Mr.  Moody,  who  knew  the  city  thor- 
oughly, had  fixed  on  a  section  on  the  west  side  in  which  three 
theatres  were  located,  the  Haymarket,  Standard  and  Empire, 
as  one  of  the  centers  of  his  summer  campaign.  Having  se- 
cured a  large  building  on  West  Madison  street,  the  first  floor 
was  fitted  up  as  a  mission  hall,  the  upper  floors  being  used 
for  the  living  and  sleeping  rooms  of  some  thirty  young  men 
from  the  Institute.  These  were  the  scouts,  recruiting  ofificers, 
the  advertising  agents,  the  midnight  workers  and  the  ushers 
and  workers  for  the  larger  meetings  to  be  held  in  the  theatres. 
This  hall  was  open  every  evening.  At  ten  o'clock  there 
was  a  special  rescue  service,  to  which  good  singing,  an  attrac- 
tive room  and  cheery  welcome  combined  to  draw  in  a  great 
lot  of  miserable,  idle,  shiftless,  aimless,  half-drunken,  hopeless 
wrecks  of  humanity.  These  were  just  a  sample  of  the  lost  and 
ruined  men  and  women  who  were  to  have  the  gospel  of  deliv- 
erance and  forgiveness  and  salvation  preached  to  them  in 

HAYMARKET  THEATRE 

for  the  next  six  months.     Here  it  was  in  this  theatre  which 


278  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

would  scat  about  three  thousand  people,  that  Mr.  Moody  took 
his  stand  for  the  campaign,  preaching  every  Sunday  morning 
but  two  until  October  had  passed,  to  an  audience  that  crowded 
the  building  to  the  last  foot  of  standing  room,  and  his  first 
sermon  was  preached  on  the  third  Sunday  in  May  on  "King 
Herod  and  John  the  Baptist;  the  Murderer  and  the  Martyr," 
over  two  hundred  persons  being  deeply  impressed. 

During  all  the  weeks  of  that  beautiful  summer  the  multi- 
tudes of  people  surged  about  these  theatres  like  the  restless 
tides  that  ebb  and  flow  in  our  rivers  by  the  sea.  While  thous- 
ands came  out  of  the  miserable  districts  near  by,  the  great 
majority  of  the  audiences  were  made  up  of  World's  Fair  visi- 
tors. Mr.  Spurgeon  once  replied  to  a  friend  who  suggested 
that  he  ought  to  make  a  tour  around  the  world  and  preach  to 
everybody:  ."I  can  just  stand  in  my  place  in  London,  and  let 
the  world  come  to  me."  So  Mr.  Moody  preached  in  Chicago 
and  from  the  ends  of  the  earth  people  were  gathered  together. 

This  is  a  most  remarkable  fact  in  Mr.  Moody's  career,  that 
for  more  than  twenty-five  years  the  largest  buildings  that 
could  be  found  in  any  metropolis  have  failed  to  contain  the 
multitudes  that  have  thronged  to  hear  him  preach  the  old, 
old  story  of  the  gosepl. 

In  a  few  weeks  Mr.  Moody's  force  of  workers  had  been 
vastly  increased.  Their  names  would  cover  a  page — while 
churches  everywhere  were  being  thrown  open  to  them. 
Among  many  others  the  writer  was  glad  to  offer  his  church 
in  Rogers  Park,  North  Side,  to  the  committee  and  to  welcome 
to  his  pulpit  for  union  services  Rev.  Dr.  Torrey,  superinten- 
dent of  the  r.ible  Institute,  Rev.  J.  H.  EUiot  and  others.  He 
considers  it  a  kind  providence  that  thus  gave  him  the  oppor- 
tunity of  laboring  again  in  any  connection  with  Mr.  Moody 
after  the  lapse  of  all  the  years  since  1876. 

With  the  coming  of  June,  Rev.  John  McNeil, 
THE  SCOTTISH  SPURGEON, 
arrived.     He  proved  to  be  a  strong  right  hand  to  Mr.  Moody, 


THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN.  279 

and  remained,  till  the  very  last  service,  one  of  the  most  popu- 
lar preachers  of  Uieni  all.  Whenever  Mr,  Moody  or  McNeill 
was  to  preach,  one  had  to  go  very  early  to  have  any  hope  of 
getting  within  the  building. 

Upon  personal  invitation  extended,  he  addressed  our  min- 
isters' Union  one  Monday  morning.  Describing  the  work 
that  was  being  carried  on  in  hope  of  reaching  the  hearts  and 
consciences  of  thousands,  he  said  that  "Preaching  is  like  tight 
rope  walking — you  either  get  there,  or  you  don't."  It  is 
needless  to  say  that  McNeill  always  got  there.  If  that  was  a 
bit  of  Chicago  slang,  he  had  quickly  "caught  on." 

At  the  afternoon  service  one  day  McNeill  took  for  his  theme 
the  story  of  the  man  with  a  withered  hand,  which  is  found  in 
the  third  chapter  of  Mark,  of  which  we  give  a  portion: 

"The  Savior's  interest  centered  in  the  man  with  the  with- 
ered hand — in  him  of  all  the  crowd  of  the  synagogue.  The 
Lord  loves  a  fellow  that's  down.  Jesus  said,  'Stand  forth.' 
Then  he  said,  'Stretch  forth  thy  hand.'  Two  words  did  the 
business.  The  man  stood  forth.  Play  the  man  if  you're  go- 
ing to  be  a  Christian.  You're  brazen  faced  enough  as  a  sin- 
ner. You  don't  care  who  sees  you  going  into  the  saloon,  but 
you're  ashamed  to  be  seen  coming  to  Jesus. 

"You  go  to  the  devil  without  a  blush;  don't  be  ashamed  to 
be  a  Christian.  May  God  give  you  courage.  When  the  man 
stood  forth  Jesus  made  short  work  of  the  withered  hand. 
They  may  scofif  you  into  hell.  They  can't  scofiT  you  out. 
Mind  you,  if  I'm  saying  sharp  things,  my  heart's  warm. 
God's  gospel  works  not  to  cut  to  pieces,  but  to  cut  out  the 
evil.  Stand  forth  in  the  midst.  Don't  try  to  sneak  into 
heaven.  Resist  the  devil  and  he'll  flee  from  you.  He's  a  big- 
ger coward  than  you  are,  and  that's  saying  a  good  deal.  One 
man  with  Jesus  is  a  splendid  majority.  The  man  with  the 
withered  hand  might  have  thought  Jesus  an  imposter.  Look 
to  Jesus — don't  look  at  your  sins.  Taking  Jesus  at  his  word 
saves  me  forevermore. 


28o  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

"Now,  I  want  to  follow  the  man  home.  There  is  an  old 
tradition  that  the  man  with  the  withered  hand  was  a  stone 
mason  spoiled  for  stone-cutting. 

''Imagine  the  scene  when  the  man  went  home  to  his  family 
with  his  withered  hand  restored!  The  explanation  was  all  in 
one  word — Jesus.  My  God,  what  a  family  blessing  salvation 
is!  And  God  let  the  man  live  on  to  prove  his  restoration. 
God  doesn't  whisk  a  man  away  to  heaven  as  soon  as  he's  con- 
verted. He  keeps  him  alive  to  let  him  work.  Henceforth 
that  man  was  to  work  to  the  glory  of  God.  The  sermon  is 
preached.  Now  it's  to  do  it.  We  can't  be  born  full-grown, 
but  we  may  be  born  now.  Now  away  home  and  confess 
Jesus." 

We  see  at  once  that  his  style  is  brusque,  the  sentences  short, 
sharp,  incisive,  and  leading  to  instant  decision.  I  recall  an 
amusing  story  he  once  told  about  his  little  boy,  but  rather  at 
his  own  expense.  It  occurred  while  he  was  pastor  in  Lon- 
don. Mrs.  McNeill  being  an  invalid  at  the  time,  it  was  her 
custom  to  ask  the  children  after  their  return  from  church 
where  the  text  was,  then  to  repeat  it  and  to  tell  her  about  the 
sermon.  To  her  usual  questions  one  Sunday  the  little  fellow 
replied,  "I've  forgotten  the  text  and  I  can't  remember  much 
about  the  sermon,  but  one  thing  I  know,  there's  got  to  be 
more  work  and  less  talk  about  the  house  after  this." 

Always  and  everywhere  Mr.  Moody  labored  with  boundless 
enthusiasm.  "I  believe  this  is  the  best  day  Chicago  has  ever 
seen,"  he  would  say,  after  some  Sabbath  of  unusual  power. 
"Think  of  the  people  from  these  meetings  carrying  the  sacred 
fire  with  them  into  all  the  places  where  they  go  throughout 
this  country  and  other  lands.  Never  have  I  seen  such  eager- 
ness  to  hear  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ  as  in  these  days.  I 
think  I  have  not  seen  in  America  anything  that  has  been  more 
encouraging  than  the  work  in  Chicago  in  the  last  three 
months." 

By  the  latter  part  of  August  nearly  forty  ministers,  lay  evan- 


THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN.  281 

gelists  and  singers,  with  from  two  to  three  hundred  other 
Christian  workers,  were  engaged  in  the  work  which  was  being 
carried  on  in  the  different  districts  in  Chicago,  in  tents,  and 
halls  and  theaters,  and  a  dozen  churches  that  had  been  placed 
at  Mr.  Moody's  disposal. 

On  the  last  Sabbath  of  the  month  it  was  carefully  estimated 
that  over  50,000  people  had  heard  the  gospel  that  day,  many 
of  whom  had  been  brought  to  the  full  and  glad  acceptance  of 
Christ  as  their  Savior. 

With  the  beginning  of  September  a  new  departure  was 
taken,  which  was  nothing  less  than  the  securing  of 

CENTRAL  MUSIC  HALL 

for  daily  services  during  the  last  two  months  of  the  campaign. 
This  spacious  hall  is  located  at  the  heart  of  the  city.  Some 
httle  fear  was  felt  regarding  the  experiment  of  pushing  the 
meeting  into  the  very  center  of  business  hours,  from  11  A.  M. 
to  I  P.  M. 

The  opening  services  were  held  on  the  first  Sunday  in  Sep- 
tember and  before  the  close  of  the  day  all  fears  had  vanished. 

In  the  morning  McNeill  preached  a  most  eloquent  and 
inspiring  sermon,  and  in  the  evening  Mr.  Moody  gave  his  fav- 
orite sermon  on  Daniel,  which  has  always  aroused  the  utmost 
interest  and  enthusiasm  in  the  hearts  of  his  audiences. 

Monday  was  Labor  Day,  and  whoever  has  tried  to  make 
his  way  through  the  crowds  or  waited  in  vain  for  a  break 
through  which  he  might  cross  the  streets,  can  imagine  the 
difficulties  through  which  one  had  to  force  his  way  to  Central 
]\Iusic  Hall.  Yet  the  hall  was  filled.  The  event  of  the  hour 
was 

THE  ARRIVAL  OF  DR.  STOECKER, 

late  court  preacher  at  Berlin.  Mr.  Moody  had  invited  him 
to  come  and  help  on  in  this  great  work.  The  address  made 
upon  his  introduction,  was  very  appropriate.  Only  a  single 
paragraph  can  be  given: 


282  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

"I  have  come  to  preach  the  Word  of  God  to  my  German 
brethren.  I  came  not  to  see  America,  or  the  World's  Fair, 
but  to  take  part  with  dear  Brother  Moody  in  his  work  of 
evangeHzation  in  your  great  city.  I  had  desire  to  come  before 
but  as  court  preacher  I  was  under  orders,  and  could  not 
come.  Now,  I  am  no  more  court  preacher  of  the  German 
Empire.  I  am  a  preacher  of  the  people.  I  am  no  longer 
under  orders  but  free  to  come  and  go.  It  is  in  my  heart  to 
testify  of  my  glorious  God  to  the  thousands  of  my  countrymen 
who  are  here,  and  who  will  come  from  all  points  of  the  com- 
pass to  visit  the  World's  Fair.  I  would  bring  them  a  message 
of  tender  remembrance  and  love  from  their  brethren  in  the 
old  fatherland.  I  would  strengthen  their  love  and  loyalty  to 
the  new  fatherland  they  have  found.  And  I  would  constrain 
them  by  the  love  of  Christ  to  seek  a  home  in  the  everlasting 
fatherland  above,  where  our  departed  ones  abide." 

For  about  three  weeks  in  many  churches  and  halls  Dr. 
Stoecker  continued  to  preach  the  gospel 'to  his  countrymen, 
in  charming  simplicity  and  sweetness,  and  yet  with  great  pow- 
er. He  declared  that  our  generation  has  come  upon  one  of 
the  great  crises  of  world  history.  He  urged  men  with  im- 
passioned appeal  to  take  sides,  in  this  great  conflict,  with  our 
God,  and  stand  for  truth  and  right,  for  the  welfare  of  man  and 
the  honor  of  Christ.  His  late  vocation  as  a  court  preacher 
revealed  itself  in  the  prophetic  call  of  the  people  to  righteous- 
ness as  he  set  forth  the  evils  and  dangers  that  beset  the  path 
of  this  great  republic  in  its  career  of  development,  pointed  out 
the  only  security  for  personal,  social  and  national  life  in  the 
religion  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

If  we  mistake  not,  that  is  the  note  that  needs  to  be  sounded 
more  loudly  and  persistently  in  the  opening  of  this  century 
than  ever  before  in  the  history  of  our  beloved  country.  Right- 
eousness alone  is  a  sure  and  sufficient  foundation  for  any  na- 
tion that  hopes  to  endure  in  the  final  battles  between  the 
kingdom  of  God  and  the  kingdoms  of  this  present  evil  world. 


THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN.  283 

The  gospel  of  righteousness  for  the  individual  must  also  be 
proclaimed  as  the  only  gospel  which  can  accomplish  the  salva- 
tion of  the  nations  of  the  earth. 

MR.  MOODY  TO  CHRISTIAN  WORKERS. 

In  Paul's  consuming  zeal  for  the  conversion  of  his  kinsmen 
according  to  the  flesh,  the  great  heaviness  and  sorrow  of  his 
heart  continually  increased.  So  also  as  the  meetings  grew  in 
power,  and  new  opoprtunities  were  opening  on  every  side,  it 
seemed  as  if  the  burden  on  Mr.  Moody's  soul  grew  heavier. 
He  souglit  to  rouse  his  hearers  to  greater  zeal  and  devotion 
by  his  special  sermon  to  Christian  workers  from  the  text: 
"They  that  be  wise  shall  shine  as  the  brightness  of  the  firma- 
ment; and  they  that  turn  many  to  righteousness  as  the  stars 
forever  and  ever."     Dan.  XII :3.     He  said  in  part: 

"I  have  taken  this  theme  to-day  to  encourage  us  to  take 
hold  of  the  great  work  that  lies  at  our  hands  in  this  city  in 
these  wonderful  days.  I  thank  God  that  I  am  living  in  this 
day  and  in  Chicago.  The  opportunity  of  a  lifetime  is  before  us 
to  do  a  work  for  God  that  shall  make  all  heaven  to  sing  for  joy. 

"Let  us  not  spend  time  splitting  hairs  in  theology  and 
wrangling  about  creeds.  Let  us  go  to  work  and  save  lost 
souls.  Our  gospel  is  the  only  hope  of  the  drunkard,  the  gam- 
bler, the  harlot,  the  outcast,  the  despairing,  the  lost  on  the 
streets  of  Chicago.  Oh,  let  us  go  and  save  them!  Let  us 
stretch  out  our  hands  and  keep  them  from  rushing  into  the 
pit.  All  over  the  city  are  souls  just  Hungry  to  hear  the  gospel 
of  hope,  just  waiting  for  a  loving  Christian  heart  to  lay  hold 
on  them.  Mr.  Varley  tells  us  that  during  the  week  about  five 
hundred  men  have  been  blessed  in  the  Standard  Theatre  meet- 
ings. I  would  rather  save  one  soul  from  death  than  have  a 
monument  of  solid  gold  reaching  from  my  grave  to  the  heav- 
ens! I  tell  you  the  monument  I  want  after  I  am  dead  and 
gone  is  a  monument  with  two  legs  going  about  the  world — a 
saved  sinner  telling  of  the  salvation  of  Jesus  Christ. 


284  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

"I  don't  know  that  I  have  ever  seen  a  time  in  Chicago  for 
over  thirty  years  when  men  seemed  to  be  as  ready  to  be  talked 
to  about  their  sonls.  Talk  to  them!  Tell  them  of  Jesus,  who 
can  save  them  from  their  sins  and  wretchedness!  Tell  them 
on  the  streets,  in  the  cars,  in  their  homes,  in  the  meetings! 
Speak  a  word  of  hope  and  help  and  life  to  those  poor,  hungry 
hearts!  I  believe  more  can  be  done  in  this  city  during  the 
next  six  weeks  than  at  any  time  before,  if  we  all  go  to  work 
and  keep  at  it.  It  is  our  harvest  time.  It  is  the  day  of  the 
Lord.     It  is  the  accepted  time." 

ANSWERS  TO  PRAYER. 

Besides  this  great  burden  for  the  conversion  of  the  souls 
of  the  perishing,  there  was  the  constant  and  heavy  care  of 
securing  the  means  of  carrying  on  the  work.  Mr.  Moody  had 
no  committee  behind  him  responsible  for  meeting  the  enor- 
mous expenses,  which  amounted  to  over  $60,000  for  the  sum- 
mer. He  had  entered  upon  the  work  believing  that  God 
would  sustain  them.  At  one  time,  especially,  they  were  in 
great  straits.  Several  thousand  dollars  were  necessary  to  pay 
the  bills  falling  due  in  a  tew  days,  and  nobody  knew  where 
it  was  to  come  from.  The  few  who  knew  and  were  sharing 
in  the  anxiety  were  most  earnest  in  prayer.  This  inner  cir- 
cle gathered  about  the  dinner  table  one  day  in  Mr.  Moody's 
room  with  troubled  hearts.  Meantime  in  far  away  North- 
field  Dr.  Gordon  was  presenting  to  the  conference  gathered 
there  the  great  work  that  was  being  carried  on  in  Chicago  un- 
der enormous  expense.  An  appeal  was  then  made  for  money 
to  assist  Mr.  Moody  in  carrying  forward  what  they  considered 
the  greatest  work  of  his  life,  except  the  organizing  of  the 
schools  at  Northfield,  and  in  half  an  hour  over  $6000  was  re- 
ported and  instantly  telegraphed  to  Mr.  Moody  at  Chicago. 
The  telegram  was  handed  to  him  at  that  dinner  table,  and  hav- 
ing read  it  he  passed  it  to  Mr.  Torrey,  who  read  it  aloud: 

"Your  friends  at  Northfield  have  given  to-day  as  a  free-will 


THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN.  285 

offering  six  thousand  dollars  for  your  work  in  Chicago,  and 
there  is  more  to  follow." 

With  a  common  impulse  they  pushed  their  chairs  back  from 
the  table  and  with  tears  of  gratitude  and  broken  voices,  lifted 
up  their  hearts  in  praise  to  God.  Thus  during  all  that  sum- 
mer they  carried  all  their  cares  and  burdens  and  anxieties  and 
difficulties  to  the  Lord,  and  the  Lord  heard  and  the  windows 
were  opened,  the  money  came,  the  difficulties  vanished,  and 
blessings  were  poured  out  upon  all  the  multitudes  in  copious 
showers  of  grace. 

THE  LAST  DAYS. 

The  last  days  of  the  great  campaign,  as  of  the  World's  Fair 
itself,  were  certainly  by  far  the  best.  People  seemed  to  rouse 
themselves  to  the  value  of  the  opportunities  which  were  fast 
slipping  away.  On  the  second  Sabbath  of  October  nearly 
75,000  people  attended  the  one  hundred  meetings  which  were 
held  in  over  fifty  different  places  under  Mr.  Moody's  leader- 
ship. At  the  close  of  the  week  he  said:  "We  have  to-day  ev- 
erything to  encourage  us,  and  nothing  to  discourage  us.  This 
has  been  by  far  the  best  work  we  have  yet  had.  The  gospel 
has  through  these  agencies  been  brought  to  150,000  during 
the  week.  I  have  never  seen  greater  eagerness  to  hear  the 
Word  of  God." 

October  8th,  the  anniversary  of  the  great  conflagration,  had 
been  set  aside  as 

CHICAGO  DAY. 

The  city  was  determined  that  it  should  be  the  greatest  day 
of  the  Fair  and  it  was  a  tremendous  day.  Over  700,000  peo- 
ple paid  admission  into  the  Fair  on  that  most  perfect  October 
day.  Thousands  will  remember  the  day,  or  the  night  rather, 
as  the  means  of  transportation  were  so  far  overtaxed  that 
multitudes  were  not  able  to  get  back  to  their  lodgings  or 
their  homes  till  the  next  day. 

Mr.  Moody  determined  to  celebrate  it  by  a  special  service 


286  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

at  Central  Music  Hall  lasting  from  lo  A.  M.  until  2.30  P.  M. 
The  most  telling  part  of  this  most  enthusiastic  service,  which 
was  crowded  to  the  street  all  day,  was  the  delivery  by  Mr. 
Moody  of  the  same  sermon  he  was  preaching  twenty-two 
years  before  in  Farwell  Hall  when  the  fire  broke  out. 

On  the  platform  the  entire  company  of  evangelists,  the 
chief  song  leaders,  and  a  great  chorus  choir  occupied  every 
inch  of  space.  People  in  the  upper  galleries  seemed  to  be 
clinging  to  the  very  sides  of  the  great  hall.  Promptly  on 
time,  Mr.  Moody  cried  out:  "Let  us  sing,  'All  hail  the  power 
of  Jesus  name'  "  and  from  that  on,  with  scarcely  a  pause, 
there  was  a  perfect  torrent  of  praise  from  choir,  chorus,  cor- 
net and  organ,  in  almost  a  score  of  selections,  interspersed 
with  fervent  prayers  and  still  more  fervid  addresses.  Mr. 
Moody's  sermon  occupied  the  last  half  hour.  It  was  from 
the  text  "What  shall  I  do  then  with  Jesus,  which  is  called 
Christ?"  It  is  Pilate's  question.  Matt.  XXVII  :22.  Before 
the  great  fire  Mr.  Moody  had  been  preaching  on  the  life  of 
Christ,  and  this  was  next  to  the  last  sermon  in  the  series  he 
had  prepared.  Farwell  Hall  was  at  that  time  crowded  with 
the  largest  congregation  he  had  ever  preached  to  in  Chicago. 

"That  night  I  made  one  of  the  greatest  mistakes  of  my  life. 
After  preaching  with  all  the  power  that  God  had  given  me, 
urging  Christ  upon  the  people,  I  closed  up  the  sermon  and 
said,  T  wish  you  would  take  this  text  home  with  you  and  turn 
it  over  in  your  minds  during  the  week ;  and  next  Sabbath  we 
will  come  to  Calvary  and  the  cross,  and  we  will  decide  what  wc 
will  do  with  Jesus  of  Nazareth.' 

"I  have  never  seen  that  congregation  since.  I  have  hard 
work  to  keep  back  the  tears  here  to-day.  I  have  looked  over 
this  audience,  and  not  a  single  one  is  here  that  I  preached  to 
that  night.  I  have  a  great  many  old  friends,  and  am  pretty 
well  acquainted  in  Chicago,  but  twenty-two  years  have  passed 
away,  and  I  have  not  seen  that  congregation  since,  and  I 
will  never  meet  those  people  again  until  I  meet  them  in  an- 


THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN.  287 

other  world.  But  I  want  to  tell  you  of  one  lesson  I  learned 
that  night,  which  I  have  never  forgotten,  and  that  is,  when  I 
preach  to  press  Christ  upon  the  people  then  and  there,  and  try 
to  bring  them  to  a  decision  on  the  spot.  I  would  rather  have 
that  hand  cut  off  than  give  an  audience  a  week  to  decide  what 
to  do  with  Jesus. 

"I  have  often  been  criticized  and  people  have  said,  'Moody, 
you  seem  to  try  to  get  people  to  decide  all  at  once;  why  do 
you  not  give  them  time  to  consider?'  I  have  asked  God  many 
times  to  forgive  me  for  telling  people  that  night  to  take  a  week 
to  think  it  over,  and  if  he  spares  my  life  I  will  never  do  it  again. 
This  audience  will  break  up  in  a  few  moments,  and  we  will 
never  meet  again.  There  is  something  awfully  solemn  about 
a  congregation  like  this."  Then  follows  the  sermon  proper, 
which  we  have  not  space  to  quote  here,  but  will  add  a  few  of 
his 

CLOSING  WORDS. 

'T  cannot  detain  you  much  longer,  but  I  would  like  to-day 
to  press  upon  you  this  one  question:  'What  shall  I  do  with 
Jesus  Christ?'  I  can  not  speak  for  the  rest  of  you,  but  ever 
since  that  night  of  the  great  fire  I  have  determined  as 
long  as  God  spares  my  life  to  make  more  of  Christ  than  in 
the  past.  I  think  that  He  is  a  thousand  times  more  to  me  to- 
day than  he  was  twenty-two  years  ago.  I  made  some  vows 
after  that  Chicago  fire,  and  I  want  to  tell  you  that  God  has 
helped  me  to  keep  those  vows.  I  am  not  what  I  wish  I  was, 
but  I  am  a  good  deal  better  than  I  was  when  Chicago  was 
on  fire.     *  *  *  *  * 

"It  is  only  a  little  while,  a  few  months,  a  few  years,  and  we 
will  all  be  gone.  May  God  help  us  now  to  pay  our  vows  in 
the  presence  of  all  the  people.  Come  now,  while  I  am  speak- 
ing, and  just  make  a  full,  complete  and  unconditional  surren- 
der to  God  and  say,  'Here  am  I,  Lord,  take  me  and  use  me; 
let  me  have  the  privilege  of  being  co-workers  with  Thee,'  and 
there  will  be  a  fire  kindled  here  that  will  burn  to  all  eternity. 


288  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

This  hour,  this  minute,  make  up  your  minds  that  you  are  go- 
ing to  be  from  this  time  forth  on  the  Lord's  side.  Go  to  your 
home,  to  your  church,  and  give  a  ringing  testimony  for  the 
Son  of  God.  Go  to  work,  do  what  you  can  for  Christ,  and 
there  will  be  grand  days  for  this  republic  and  a  blessed  life  for 
you  here  and  hereafter." 

With  a  fervent,  tearful  prayer  for  the  city  and  the  passing 
multitudes,  with  singing,  and  the  benediction,  that  great 
throng  broke  up  only  to  meet  again  before  the  great  White 
Throne. 

For  the  few  days  remaining  the  work  was  pressed  with  re- 
doubled energy  all  along  the  line — through  the  city,  into  the 
suburbs,  within  the  Fair  itself  by  day  and  by  night — but  the 
end  hastened.  Mr.  Moody  came  to  the  last  days  with  great 
reluctance.  "I  can  not  tell  you  how  sorry  I  am  that  this 
blessed  work  is  coming  to  a  close.  This  has  been  one  of  the 
most  delightful  experiences  of  my  life.  I  am  so  thankful  that 
God  has  permitted  us  to  preach  the  gospel  to  so  many  people 
during  these  six  months." 

The  last  day,  October  31st,  the  last  day  of  the  great  World's 
Fair,  came  apace,  as  all  last  days  will  in  time.  It  was  cele- 
brated as  a  day  of  thanksgiving  with  services  at  Central  Music 
Hall  from  ten  o'clock  in  the  morning  until  half-past  three  in 
the  afternoon.  The  closing  services  proper  were  held  in  the 
Chicago  Avenue  Church.  It  was  most  fitting  that  they  should 
all  return  to  the  very  center  and  heart  of  the  movement  in  the 
church  and  in  the  institute  for  the  closing  words  of  thanksgiv- 
ing. The  church  was  crowded  as  never  before.  After  a  few 
brief  remarks,  Mr.  Moody  gave  a  few  words  of  earnest  coun- 
sel and  expressions  of  hope  for  the  future,  from  the  text, 
'Who  knowcth  whether  thou  art  come  to  the  kingdom  for 
such  a  time  as  this?'  After  a  sermon  by  McNeill,  songs, 
prayers  and  benediction,  many  farewells  were  spoken  by 
those  who  had  labored  so  faithfully,  earnestly,  and  successful- 
ly together.     Many  a  Mizpah,  "good-b^e"    and    "God  bless 


Rev.  R.  A.   Torrey. 


Reading  Room,   Chicago   Institute. 


Chicago  Institute  Staircase, 


TPTE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN. 


289 


you"  were  uttered.  The  golden  gates  of  opportunity  which 
the  hand  of  God  had  flung  so  widely  open  six  months  before 
now  swung  back  upon  their  hinges.  The  record  of  labor 
done  was  closed,  but  glorious  harvests  are  still  being  gathered 
from  the  good  seed  of  the  kingdom  which  was  there  sown  in 
the  hearts  of  men. 


19 


The  Chicago  Bible  Institute. 

HERE  are  two  places  in  America  about  which 
have  centered  Mr.  Moody's  affections  and  to 
which  his  untiring  devotion  and  unabated  zeal 
were  given,  until  his  last  heart-beat.  The  one  is 
Northfield — not  the  lovely  village  nestling  amid 
its  beautiful  trees  on  the  banks  of  the  river;  but  the  North- 
field  of  his  own  erection  on  the  hills  overlooking  the  village 
and  the  valley  of  the  Connecticut,  which  cuts  its  winding 
way  to  the  sea  through  the  most  charming  pastoral  scenes 
to  be  found  in  New  England.  And  the  other  is  Chicago,  that 
great  commercial  center  of  the  northwest,  which  seems  des- 
tined to  become  the  metropolis  of  the  United  States — a  city 
that  is  enriched  by  a  lake  traffic  exceeding  in  tonnage  that  of 
Liverpool,  with  a  drainage  canal  just  opened  into  the  Missis- 
sippi that  may  soon  become  a  ship  channel  to  the  gulf,  thus 
opening  up  to  the  enterprise  of  her  merchants  the  markets  of 
the  world.  To  this  city,  dear  to  his  heart  as  the  scene  of  his 
earliest  trials  and  great  success  as  a  Christian  worker  and 
minister,  Dwight  L.  Moody  has  left  in  his  Bible  Institute  a 
memorial  that  will  stand  as  long  as  the  city  shall  endure. 
This  training  school  for  Christian  workers,  close  adjoining 
Ciiicago  Avenue  Church,  is  Mr.  Moody's  final  gift  to  the  city 
to  which  for  more  than  forty  years  he  has  given  his  labors  of 
love,  his  ardent  prayers,  with  boundless  courage  in  the  full 
assurance  of  faith. 

Since  the  days  when  he  began  looking  for  lost  sinners  upon 
"The  Sands" — the  moral  Lazaretto,  the  Five  Points  of  Chi- 
cago— going  everywhere,  even  to  the  risk  of  his  life  to  find 
children  whom  he  might  coax  by  his  kindness  and  maple  su- 
gar to  come  to  his  mission,  his  great  interest  and  prayer  to 
God  for  these  poor,  neglected,  forsaken  masses  of  humanity 
ha£  never  flagged. 


THE    CHICAGO    BIBLE  INSTITUTE.  291 

In  1886  Chicago  had  passed  the  milHon  mark  with  its  pop- 
ulation, who  were  chiefly  foreigners.  The  Americans  are 
scarcely  one-quarter  of  this  immense  throng.  In  that  city 
were  and  are,  great  districts  as  wretched  and  vicious  as  any 
that  festered  and  bred  corruption  before  the  great  fire. 
Where  could  workers  be  found  to  undertake  the  great  mis- 
sionary work  which  was  so  desperately  needed? 

On  the  other  hand,  in  his  evangelistic  tours  throughout  the 
country  since  his  great  labors  of  1874,  '75,  '76,  he  had  every- 
where seen  and  met  large  numbers  of  young  men  and  young 
women  earnest  hearted  and  anxious  to  serve  Christ  if  only 
some  one  would  show  them  how  and  where.  He  remembered 
his  own  early  struggles  alone  and  under  great  disadvantages, 
and  saw  before  these  young  people  great  possibilities  for 
doing  good  if  only  they  might  receive  some  careful  and  sys- 
tematic teaching  of  the  Bible.  What  city  more  needy  than 
Chicago?  Where  could  students  find  such  opportunities  for 
practical  and  personal  labor  in  seeking  to  win  souls  and  deliv- 
er them  from  the  wiles  and  snares  of  the  devil?  And  the 
longer  he  thought  and  prayed  about  it  the  more  established 
grew  the  conviction  that  such  a  training  school  ought  to  be 
established.  When  such  convictions  finally  seized  upon  him 
the  time  with  him  had  come  to  act.  The  subject  began  to  be 
agitated  through  the  press  and  from  the  platform,  until,  in 
January,  1886,  Mr.  Moody  went  to  the  city  and  delivered  an 
address  on  "City  Evangelization."  He  dwelt  on  the  needs 
of  the  honest,  self-respecting  but  non  church  going  working 
people — the  infinitely  worse  condition  of  the  large  numbers 
of  the  idle,  the  drunken,  and  the  vicious  who  were  rapidly 
sinking  into  deeper  degradation.  He  pleaded  eloquently  for 
the  training  of  Christian  young  men  and  women  who  could  fill 
the  gap  between  the  churches  and  the  masses,  and  pleaded 
for  at  least  a  quarter  of  a  million  of  dollars  to  establish  the 
proposed  school.  A  society  was  organized,  money  was  pledged 
very  rapidly,  plans  were  at  once  taken  under  consideration. 


292  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

With  the  watch  night  of  December  31st,  1886,  Mr.  Moody 
began  in  the  First  Congregational  Church  an  evangeUstic 
four-months'  campaign,  services  being  held  in  various 
churches  and  skating  rinks.  During  the  summer  meetings 
were  continued  in  some  of  the  worst  districts  of  the  city,  ser- 
vices being  held  in  a  huge  tent.  They  were  very  successful, 
great  audiences  from  the  lower  and  lowest  stratas  of  society 
thronged  the  tents  and  large  numbers  were  brought  to  the 
acceptance  of  Christ.  The  problem  of  "How  to  reach  the 
masses"  found  at  least  one  practical  ansv/er — go  after  them — 
it  may  be  the  only  answer. 

Meantime  in  the  planning  for  the  school,  a  series  of  Bible 
Institutes  were  held  to  test  the  spirit  of  Christian  workers  and 
their  desire  for  special  instruction  to  help  them  to  win  souls. 
They  were  surprisingly  successful  in  attendance  and  very  en- 
couraging in  results.  In  May,  1889,  a  Bible  Institute  con- 
vened in  "Moody's  Church"  attendecl  by  nearly  two  hundred 
persons  all  eager  to  study  the  word  and  prepare  themselves 
the  better  to  do  the  Lord's  work. 

All  hindrances  seemed  to  vanish  before  the  rising  tide  of 
Christian  enthusiasm  and  a  large  property  contiguous  to  the 
church,  lying  diagonally  back  of  it,  fronting  on  what  is  now 
Institute  Place,  was  bought  and  a  fine  building,  costing 
$50,000  was  at  once  begun.  It  was  a  three-story  building, 
one  hundred  by  one  hundred  and  seventy-five  feet  in 
dimensions,  in  the  form  of  a  hollow  square,  thus  affording 
abundance  of  light  and  air  in  the  heart  of  a  closely  built-up 
section.  Three  dwellings  just  north  of  the  church  and  ad- 
joining, on  La  Salle  avenue,  were  bought  as  the  home  of  the 
Women's  Department.  Having  spent  $20,000  in  completely 
furnishing  these  various  buildings,  the  "Chicago  Bible  Insti- 
tute" was  formally  opened  with  a  week's  conference,  begin- 
ning September  26th,  1889. 

The  object  which  the  Institute  has  set  before  it  is  concisely 
stated  in  the  following  terms: 


THE    CHICAGO    BIBLE  INSTITUTE.  293 

"There  is  a  great  and  increasing  demand  for  men  and 
women  skilled  in  the  knowledge  and  use  of  the  word  of  God 
and  familiar  with  aggressive  methods  of  work  to  act  as  pas- 
tor's assistants,  city  missionaries,  general  missionaries,  Sun- 
day school  missionaries,  evangelists,  Bible  readers,  superin- 
tendents of  institutions,  and  in  various  other  fields  of  Chris- 
tian labor,  at  home  and  abroad.  All  over  the  land  are  those 
who  would,  with  a  little  well  directed  study,  become  efficient 
workers  in  these  fields.  There  are  also  many  men  called  of 
God  into  Christian  work  at  too  late  a  period  of  life  to  take  a 
regular  college  and  seminary  course,  but  who  would,  with 
such  an  opportunity  of  study  as  the  Institute  affords,  be  quali- 
fied for  great  usefulness. 

"There  is  a  third  class:  persons  who  do  not  intend  to  devote 
their  entire  time  to  gospel  work,  but  who  desire  a  larger  ac- 
quaintance with  the  Bible  and  methods  of  Christian  work, 
that  while  pursuing  their  secular  callings  they  may  also  work 
intelligently  and  successfully,  in  winning  men  to  Christ.  The 
object  of  the  Institute  is  to  meet  the  needs  of  these  several 
classes.  Besides  these,  many  ministers  and  theological  stu- 
dents who  have  enjoyed  the  advantages  of  the  regular  train- 
ing, have  spent  their  vacations  with  us,  getting  a  better 
knowledge  of  the  English  Bible,  how  to  use  it  in  personal 
work,  and  a  larger  experience  in  aggressive  methods  of 
Christian  service. 

"The  Bible  Institute  aims  to  send  out  men  and  women  hav- 
ing six  characteristics:  Thorough  consecration,  intense  love 
for  souls,  a  good  knowledge  of  God's  word,  and  especially 
how  to  handle  it  in  leading  men  to  Christ,  willingness  to  en- 
dure hardness  as  good  soldiers  of  Jesus  Christ,  untiring 
energy  and  the  baptism  of  the  Holy  Ghost." 

"One  great  purpose  we  have  in  view  in  the  Bible  Institute," 
says  Mr.  Moody,  "is  to  raise  up  men  and  women  who  will  be 
willing  to  lay  their  lives  alongside  of  the  laboring  class  and 
the  poor  and  bring  the  gospel  to  bear  upon  their  lives." 


294  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

The  Chicago  Bible  Institute  was  to  l)e  the  head  and  center 
of  the  great  campaign  during  the  World's  Fair.  To  i)rei)are 
for  the  great  throngs  expected  it  was  deemed  expedient  to  add 
two  stories  more  to  the  building.  This  was  accordingly  done 
at  a  cost  of  v$40,ooo,  and  gives  the  Institute  a  handsome,  well- 
appointed  building,  five  stories  high,  with  dormitory  accom- 
modations for  upwards  of  two  hundred  men.  The  building 
also  contains  all  needed  class  rooms,  a  fine  reading  room  on 
the  first  floor,  a  hall  seating  about  four  hundred,  with  needed 
business  ofifices,  and  a  large,  well  lighted  dining  room  and 
complete  culinary  arrangements. 

But  for  the  existence  of  the  Bible  Institute  as  a  home  for 
all  his  co-laborers,  and  the  noble  bands  of  trained  young  men 
and  women  gathered  there,  the  campaign  would  have  been  an 
impossibility,  as  Mr.  Moody  himself  confessed. 

At  the  farewell  meeting  of  the  "World's  Fair  Evangelistic 
Campaign,"  held,  most  fittingly,  in  the  Chicago  Avenue 
Church,  where  the  first  services  inaugurating  the  movement 
had  taken  place  six  months  before,  Mr.  Moody  presided,  and 
in  his  final  address  he  said: 

"Little  did  we  think,  when  we  were  praying  three  or  four 
years  ago,  to  have  a  Bible  Institute  right  close  to  this  church, 
that  we  would  have  such  an  opportunity  to  preach  the  gos- 
pel to  the  world  as  we  have  had  during  the  last  six  months. 
We  would  not  have  been  able  to  do  the  work  w^e  have  done 
during  these  past  months  if  it  had  not  been  for  this  Institu- 
tion, with  its  300  workers  gathered  from  every  part  of  the 
country.  Whenever  we  have  started  the  work  at  any  point 
we  have  had  force  enough  to  go  right  on  with  it.  I  think  it 
would  have  been  utterly  impossible  to  have  carried  on  this 
work  without  the  Bible  Institute  to  draw  upon.  Perhaps 
God  raised  it  up  for  this  very  time,  as  Esther  was  raised  up 
for  the  time  of  her  people's  peril  and  need." 

Most  precious  and  delightful  of  all  the  social  meetings  en- 


THE    CHICAGO    BIBLE  INSTITUTE.  295 

joyed  by  the  prominent  evangelists  and  singers  were  the  gath- 
erings, after  the  day's  work  was  done, 

IN  MR.  MOODY'S  ROOM 

at  the  Institute.  Here  they  came  at  all  hours  before  mid- 
night from  their  varied  labors  in  the  tents  or  theaters,  in  the 
halls  or  churches,  or  with  the  "Gospel  Wagon"  on  the  streets. 
Here  they  talked  over  their  experiences,  planned  for  the  mor- 
row and  prayed  for  a  mightier  baptism  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 
But  the  meeting  held  on  Monday  mornings  in  the  hall  of  the 
Institute  was  of  the  greatest  interest.  There  the  hundreds 
of  workers  met  together,  and  under  Mr.  Moody's  spirited 
questioning  briefly  related  what  blessings  the  Lord  had  been 
pleased  to  bestow  upon  the  labors  of  the  Sabbath. 

It  was  our  pleasure  to  drop  in  occasionally  to  hear  these  re- 
ports, and  to  renew  earlier  acquaintance  with  some  of  his  no- 
ble band  of  co-workers.  Here  we  met  again  Ferdinand 
Schiverea,  whom  Mr.  Moody  declared  to  be  the  best  tent 
preacher  in  America.  We  first  knew  him  in  a  summer's  work 
he  carried  on  years  before  in  a  hall  and  a  tent  nearby  our  own 
cluirch  in  Philadelphia.  For  three  or  four  years  just  preced- 
ing 1893  he  had  spent  his  summers  in  Chicago  engaged  in 
similar  work.  During  this  great  campaign  he  had  charge  of 
the  great  tent  holding  twelve  or  fifteen  hundred  people.  To 
this  tent  the  people  thronged.  They  came  off  the  streets  just 
as  they  were;  mothers  with  babies  in  their  arms,  children 
clinging  to  their  skirts  and  working  men  in  their  shirt  sleeves. 
There  was  nothing  fixed  up  in  that  tent,  only  clean  shavings 
or  saw  dust  strewed  on  the  ground  every  few  days.  Occa- 
sionally a  treat  was  given  the  mothers  and  children  such  as 
they  enjoyed  on  "Watermelon  Day,"  when  melons  by  the 
wagon  load  were  cut  up  and  distributed  to  the  eager,  thirsty 
crowds. 

The  great  occasions  were  the  All-day  Meetings,  which 
would  begin  at  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  last  till  eleven 


296  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

at  night;  the  exercises  changing  with  every  hour.  The  meet- 
ings might  begin  with  a  prayer  and  praise  service,  with  songs 
and  testimony  interspersed,  led  by  Mr.  Schiverea.  Then  an 
hour  under  care  of  Dr.  Torrey  with  some  of  the  best  singers, 
soloists  and  the  Torrey  Quartet  from  the  Bible  Institute.  Dr. 
Torrey 's  addresses  were  always  very  awakening  and  stimulat- 
ing. But  of  course  the  great  throngs  eagerly  waited  for  Mr. 
Moody's  appearance. 

MR.  MOODY  AT  A  TENT  SERVICE. 

At  one  uf  these  meetings  Mr.  Moody  spoke  in  substance  as 
follows : 

"Christ  left  so  many  promises  and  such  good  ones  you  can't 
tell  which  is  best.  Some  people  don't  believe  them.  Some 
think  they  are  too  good  to  be  true.  Some  think  they  were 
never  meant  to  be  believed,  and  some  think  God  can't  fulfill 
them.  Most  of  the  promises  are  on  conditions,  but  the  prom- 
ise of  Jesus  was  not  on  conditions.  Nothing  on  earth  or  in 
hell  could  have  prevented  His  coming.  Some  promises  were 
to  the  Jews,  and  not  to  us ;  but  this  promise  is  to  all  alike. 

"If  we  don't  appropriate  it,  it  isn't  worth  anything  to  us. 
The  promise  is  this:  'Come  unto  me,  all  ye  that  labor  and  are 
heavy  laden  and  I  will  give  you  rest.'  The  want  of  the  human 
heart  is  rest;  theaters,  saloons  and  pleasures  mean  the  search 
for  rest  and  pleasure. 

"Men  are  doomed  to  disappointment  if  they  try  to  drown 
sorrow  in  pleasure.  If  I  wanted  to  find  men  who  had  rest  I 
would  not  go  among  millionaires,  or  fashion-slaves,  or  poli- 
ticians. When  God  made  your  heart,  and  mine,  he  made  it 
too  big  for  this  world.  The  world  can't  fill  it.  We  need  two 
worlds.  I'll  tell  you  where  to  find  those  who  have  got  rest. 
Go  among  the  disciples  of  Jesus.  Come  to  Jesus  and  you  will 
get  rest.  That's  my  experience.  You  will  find  it  at  the  cross. 
Come,  and  you'll  get  it. 

"I  am  not  going  to  tell  you  what  'Come'  means.     I  used  to 


THE    CHICAGO    BIBLE  INSTITUTE.  297 

work  hard  to  make  people  see  what  it  was  to  'come/  but  I 
don't  do  that  any  more.     I've  gone  out  of  the  business. 

"The  first  thing  a  baby  learns  is  to  come.  There's  nothing 
mysterious  about  it.  The  Bible  is  full  of  it.  As  you  follow  it 
through,  the  voice  grows  louder  and  louder.  Thank  God  for 
the  call!  Come  with  your  sins.  Your  sins  may  keep  you  out 
of  heaven,  but  they  can't  keep  you  from  Christ.  Why  don't 
you  come,  chains  and  all?  Jesus  can  destroy  even  the  appe- 
tite for  drink.  He  means  not  you  goody  people,  but  you  sin- 
ners. Christ  is  not  only  a  sin-bearer,  he's  a  burden  bearer. 
Let  the  Christians  come  too,  and  get  rest.  People  don't  do 
that.  People  embalm  their  sorrows.  Cast  your  sorrows  on 
Him.  People  drop  their  sorrows  while  they  listen  to  a  preach- 
er or  a  singer,  and  then  pick  them  right  up  again.  Cast  your 
care  on  Him.  He  says.  Til  give  you  rest.'  May  God  write 
this  on  the  heart  of  every  one  here." 

'At  the  close  of  his  sermon,  there  was  an  hour's  intermission 
or  more,  when  the  meetings  were  resumed  with  such  preach- 
ers as  Major  Whittle,  or  John  McNeill.  The  evening  closed 
with  an  earnest  gospel  sermon  by  Mr.  Schiverea,  followed  by 
an  hour  of  personal  work.  It  was  in  these  after  meetings  that 
students  from  the  Institute  rendered  invaluable  assistance. 
Long  after  ten  o'clock  the  lights  were  put  out,  and  the  happy, 
but  tired,  workers  returned  to  their  quarters  to  recount  the 
successes  of  the  day. 

After  a  four  years'  testing  of  the  methods  of  institute  work 
and  after  the  experiences  of  that  six  months'  campaign,  Mr. 
Moody  said:  "I  find  no  reason  to  essentially  change  or  modify 
the  course  of  instruction  and  training  of  the  Bible  Institute. 
I  am  more  than  ever  convinced  that  we  are  on  right  lines,  and 
that  what  is  needed  are  men  and  women  trained  in  the  knowl- 
edge and  practical  use  of  the  Word  of  God,  and  in 
the  use  of  their  voices  in  gospel  song.  The  effect 
of  the  campaign  has  been  to  deepen  the  love  for  souls, 
and  the  earnestness  in  Christian  efforts  on  the  part  of  the  stu- 


298  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

dents.  It  has  more  than  ever  convinced  them  that  it  is  the 
preaching  of  the  old  j^ospel  that  draws  men,  and  hfts  them  up; 
and  it  has  g'iven  them  tlie  advantage  of  contact  with  the  very 
l)est  jireachers  in  the  world." 

This  dehberate  expression  of  Mr.  Moody's  maturest  judg- 
ment after  the  severest  strain  of  practical  work  to  which  the 
students  could  be  subjected,  is  another  evidence  of  the  care- 
fulness and  thoroughness  with  which  he  considered  special 
lines  of  Christian  study  and  work,  and  the  wisdom  and  energy 
with  which  he  carried  them  out. 

THE  BIBLE  IS  THE  ONLY  TEXT  BOOK 

in  use  at  the  Institute.  The  course  of  instruction  covers  a 
space  of  two  years,  and  as  it  always  proceeds  in  a  circle,  stu- 
dents can  enter  at  any  time.  The  Bible  Institute  has  never 
taken  a  vacation  since  it  was  opened.  Two  Bible  lectures  daily 
on  the  average,  and  two  music  lessons  to  classes  have  been 
given  regularly  without  a  break. 

The  report  of  1898  states  that  1538  students  have  been  en- 
rolled in  the  men's  department;  and  766  in  the  women's.  Dur- 
ing that  one  year  there  were  at  the  Institute  341  men  and  165 
women.  This  was  a  gain  of  28  over  the  year  1897.  The  cost 
of  an  annual  scholarship  for  the  training  of  one  student  is  but 
$150.  Sometimes  the  non-resident  students — those  who 
come  in  to  take  some  special  course  of  lectures,  for  which  no 
fee  is  charged,  may  number  as  high  as  6000  within  a  single 
year. 

WHERE  DO  THESE  STUDENTS  GO? 

Where  do  they  not  go  on  their  consecrated  errands  of  Chris- 
tian service?  Nearly  two  hundred  are  now  engaged  in  city 
rescue  and  home  mission  work.  Many  are  engaged  in  gospel 
work  as  evangelists  or  singers.  Two  hundred  more  have  gone 
on  with  their  studies  and  now  are  either  pastors  or  pastors' 
assistants;  117  have  gone  out  as  foreign  missionaries  to  Ja- 
pan and  China,  India  and  Africa  and  the  islands  of  the  sea; 


THE    CHICAGO    BIBLE  INSTITUTE.  299 

while  others  are  to  be  found  engaged  in  every  kind  of  Chris- 
tian work  along  educational  and  philanthropic  or  distinctively 
religious  lines. 

It  has  been  said  that  there  is  no  genius  but 

THE  GENIUS  OF  HARD  WORK. 

Mr.  Moody,  during  his  lifetime,  by  his  own  tireless  energy, 
boundless  zeal  and  continued  insistence  that  success  means 
hard,  honest  work  continued  throughout  three  hundred  and 
sixty-five  days  in  the  year,  gave  to  the  world  the  most  remark- 
able illustration  of  such  success  that  has  ever  been  seen  since 
the  days  of  St.  Paul.  Thousands  of  young  men  and  women 
at  Northfield,  Mount  Hermon  and  the  Bible  Institute  have  by 
him  been  inspired  with  a  zeal  and  devotion  which  have  multi- 
plied their  own  energies,  some  thirty,  some  sixty,  some  an 
hundred  fold. 

Could  the  thousands  of  students  who  have  enjoyed  the  ad- 
vantages of  these  great  institutions  have  passed  before  him 
in  grand  review  yonder  at  Northfield  before  his  departure, 
without  any  semblance  of  boasting,  Mr.  Moody  might  truly 
have  said  as  he  waved  them  farewell,  "Ye  are  our  epistles, 
known  and  read  of  all  men."  "Ye  are  our  joy  and  crown  of 
rejoicing."  The  world  needs  no  other  memorial  of.  nor  tes- 
timony to,  the  power  of  that  life  than  is  given  by  those  lives 
which  have  been  transformed,  spiritualized  and  consecrated, 
by  the  gracious  ministry  in  the  gospel  of  one  whose  name  the 
world  will  never  let  die,  the  divinely  called  and  grace-com- 
missioned preacher  of  the  gospel,  Dwight  L.  Moody. 


Mr.  Moody's  Last  Campaign. 

N  the  early  summer  of  1899  Mr.  Moody  was  the  guest 
of  honor  at  a  banquet  of  the  Presbyterian  Social  Un- 
ion, of  Philadelphia.  Nearly  three  hundred  of  the 
most  prominent  ministers  and  laymen  of  the  Presby- 
terian Church  were  gathered  at  the  Withcrspoon 
Building,  Mr.  John  H.  Converse,  president  of  the  Union,  occu- 
pying the  chair.  On  rising  to  deliver  an  address  on  "City 
Evangelization,"  Mr.  Moody  received  the  most  cordial  of 
greetings  and  spoke  with  all  his  old  time  vigor  and  enthusi- 
asm. He  rapidly  sketched  the  exceptional  advantages  a  sum- 
mer campaign  afforded  for  reaching  the  multitudes  of  non- 
church-goers  and  the  duty  of  the  church  towards  the  mil- 
lion of  people  who  would  be  obliged  to  stay  in  the  city  during 
the  hot  weather.  His  suggestions  met  with  most  hearty  ap- 
proval, and  later  ?  committee  was  appointed  under  whose  aus- 
pices such  work  was  organized  and  carried  forward.  A  half 
dozen  tents  were  pitched  in  different  sections  of  the  city,  and 
prominent  evangelists  were  called  in  to  assist  the  pastors, 
with  very  gratifying  results.  Thousands  of  people  thronged 
to  the  tents  and  upwards  of  nine  hundred  professed  acceptance 
of  Christ. 

In  Noveml)er,  Mr.  Moody,  passing  through  the  city  on  his 
way  to  Kansas  City,  tarried  for  an  hour  or  two  to  confer  with 
some  of  his  friends.  As  eager  as  ever  for  the  salvation  of 
men,  he  remarked  that  he  hoped  that  he  might  be  used  of  God 
to  move  some  great  city  yet  before  he  died.  The  evangelistic 
committee  were  even  then  considering  plans  looking  towards 
his  return,  to  begin  with  the  new  year  another  series  of  revi- 
val meetings.  These  plans  were  never  to  materialize.  It  was 
destined  that  Kansas  City  should  have  the  sad  pre-eminence 
of  being  the  scene  of  Mr.  Moody's  last  campaign. 

On  Sunday,  November  12th,  1899,  Mr.  Moody  began  his 


MR.  MOODY'S  LAST  CAMPAIGN.  301 

meetings  in  the  great  Convention  Hall  of  Kansas  City.  These 
meetings  will  always  possess  a  profound  inten^st,  rounding 
out  as  they  do  the  marvelous  evangelistic  labors  of  nearly  for- 
ty years.     The  great  evangelist  seemed 

AT  THE  ZENITH  OF  HIS  POWERS. 

Never  did  he  have  his  audiences  more  completely  in  his  hand. 
He  swayed  them,  as  he  would,  to  laughter,  or  to  tears.  Hearts 
were  set  all  aflame  with  enthusiasm,  broken  into  deepest  peni- 
tence, yet  without  any  apparent  excitement.  Before  him  sat 
the  great  multitudes,  silent  and  attentive.  Upon  their  faces 
the  deepest  interest  was  depicted,  and  all  remained  to  the  end 
of  his  addresses  as  if  fearing  to  lose  a  single  word  that  fell 
from  his  lips.  Without  the  natural  gifts  of  the  orator,  still 
less  using  any  of  the  arts  of  the  rhetorician,  he  yet  spoke  with 
a  power  that  was  overwhelming.  If  it  was  not  in  the  power 
of  man  that  he  spoke,  it  must  have  been  what  thousands  all 
over  the  world  have  felt  and  confessed  it  to  be — in  the  power 
of  God,  in  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 

At  the  Sabbath  afternoon  service,  the  opening  of  the  week 
of  religious  revival,  there  were  at  the  very  least  13,000  people 
in  the  big  hall.  From  the  platform  it  seemed  a  veritable  sea 
of  faces.  The  crowds  began  arriving  early,  and  at  2.30,  the 
hour  when  the  song  service  commenced,  there  were  at  least 
8,000  people  present.  All  during  the  song  service  they  kept 
pouring  in  to  the  sound  of  the  mighty  chorus.  All  was  or- 
derly. But  at  three  o'clock  no  more  could  enter,  for  the  hall 
w^as  literally  filled  in  its  seating  capacity.  The  doors  were 
closed  and  no  more  allowed  to  enter.  There  were  probably 
2,000  people  turned  aw^ay  from  the  afternoon  services.  Pro- 
bably never  before  in  Convention  Hall  had  there  been  such 
an  orderly  throng  as  there  was  that  afternoon.  It  seemed  as  if 
the  spirit  of  Moody  pervaded  all,  as  it  in  reality  did.  His  watch- 
ful eyes  saw  everything,  and  all  was  done  under  his  direction. 

For  thirty  minutes  the  song  service  continued,  led  by  a 


302  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

chorus  of  over  500  singers  from  local  choirs.  Old  familiar 
hymns  were  sung,  and  the  vast  audience  joined  in  with  eager 
and  reverent  delight.  They  sang  "My  Jesus,  I  Love  Thee," 
"At  the  Cross/'  "Rescue  the  Perishing,"  and  the  like.  The 
voices  swelled  in  a  mighty  chorus  wondrous  to  hear  and  the 
great  volume  of  sound  filled  the  great  hall  and  echoed  back 
again  and  again,  and  the  chorus  could  be  heard  a  block  away. 

MUST  BE  QUIET. 

At  just  three  o'clock  Dr.  Northrup  made  a  short  prayer,  not 
over  three  minutes  in  length.  As  the  sound  of  his  voice  died 
away  Mr.  Moody  stepped  to  the  front  of  the  stage,  and  in  a 
clear  resonant  voice  asked  all  to  be  quiet.  He  was  the  cyno- 
sure of  all  eyes.  "All  can  hear  in  this  great  hall,"  he  said,  "if 
all  will  only  remain  quiet.  Don't  think  I  was  ever  in  a  better 
hall,"  he  added,  with  a  chuckle,  "for  its  size.  Just  wait  now 
till  I  get  them  all  still,"  he  said  to  those  about  him.  "Now,  let 
us  have  it  very  quiet,"  he  said,  raising  his  voice  so  that  it 
swelled  throughout  the  hall.  "Then  we  will  have  a  moment 
of  silent  prayer,"  and  he  raised  his  hand  aloft. 

A  silence  as  of  God  fell  swiftly  upon  that  multitude.  First 
the  whispering  ceased,  then  the  hands  fell  to  the  lap.  the  heads 
were  bowed,  the  ushers  stood  stock  still.  The  sounds  on  the 
street  seemed  to  stop.  The  children  appalled  by  the  stillness 
became  silent  too.  The  hush  became  awe-full.  Twelve 
thousand  people  in  the  hall  and  not  an  audible  sound.  The 
scene  and  the  situation  were  profoundly  solemn.  Mr.  Moody 
stood  and  listened  and  prayed  in  silence.  The  people  also 
prayed.  It  was  the  most  impressive  space  of  time  during  all 
the  meetings.  At  last,  when  the  strain  became  so  terrific  that 
it  seemed  it  could  not  last  a  moment  longer  without  some 
heart  bursting,  Mr.  Moody  lifted  his  head  and  the  spell  was 
broken.  "Bishop  Hendrix  will  lead  us  in  prayer,"  said  Mr. 
Moody.  "Breathe  upon  us.  O  Lord,"  began  the  bishop. 
Hardly  had  the  last  word  of  the  prayer  died  upon  his  lips  ere 


MR.  MOODY'S  LAST  CAMPAIGN.  303 

Mr.  Moody  had  raised  his  voice  aloft;  he  again  asked  that  all 
be  quiet.  It  was  evident  that  he  was  resolved  that  silence 
should  pervade  all;  and  as  he  requested  this  the  vast  throng 
became  as  still  as  little  children  awed  into  silence  by  the  si- 
lence and  dim  lights  of  some  great  cathedral.  A  laugh  fell 
from  Mr.  Moody's  lips;  he  was  pleased. 

"All  who  have  sheet  hymns  please  hold  them  up  high,"  he 
asked.  At  once  5,000  arms  were  raised  high,  holding  the  rust- 
ling sheets  upon  which  the  hymns  are  printed.  It  was  an  odd 
sight,  something  like  a  dark  sea  overcast  with  white  caps. 

''Now  shake  them,"  he  said.  They  all  did,  and  the  rustling 
was  like  a  wind  blowing  through  a  forest. 

"Now  please  sit  on  them,"  he  said,  with  a  laugh;  "I  only 
wanted  you  to  see  what  a  noise  they  make  if  you  keep  handling 
them."     Then  he  began  his  sermon. 

SOWING  AND  REAPING. 

"In  after  years,  as  you  go  by  this  building,  I  want  you  to 
remember  this  text  which  I  am  about  to  read  to  you. 
I  pray  that  God  will  write  it  on  every  heart.  It  appeals 
to  men  and  women  of  all  sorts  and  conditions,  to  the 
priests  and  ministers  and  to  the  reporters.  My  text  is  this: 
'Be  not  deceived;  God  is  not  mocked;  for  whatsoever  a  man 
soweth  that  shall  he  also  reap.' 

"The  most  real  thing  in  the  world  is  sin."  As  Mr.  Moody 
began  the  serious  part  of  his  sermon  he  was  standing  at  the 
very  edge  of  the  stage  to  the  left  of  the  little  organ.  His  hands 
were  clasped  behind  his  back  and  he  stood  very  straight  to 
keep  his  balance.  His  head  seemed  to  incline  to  his  breast, 
and  his  eyes  rolled  upwards  and  over  the  people. 

"The  river  of  sin  is  dark  and  black,"  said  Mr.  Moody.  His 
hands  fell  to  his  sides.  "God  is  not  mocked.  Our  neigh- 
bors, our  friends,  our  enemies,  yea,  even  our  own  hearts  de- 
ceive us,  but  God  does  not  deceive  us.  God  is  not  mocked. 
What  amazes  me  is  that  men  find  it  so  hard  to  get  at  this  truth. 


304  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

"  'Whatsoever  a  man  soweth  that  shall  he  also  reap.* 
There's  nothing  in  the  whole  Bible  more  solemn  and  true  than 
that  text.  I  want  to  make  you  believe  that.  It's  an  eternal 
law  in  the  natural  and  in  the  spiritual  world,  that  you  must 
reap  what  you  sow.  If  you  sow  potatoes  in  a  field  you  reap 
potatoes;  if  you  sow  onions  you  reap  onions;  if  you  sow  sin  in 
your  life  you  reap  sin,  and  you  reap  it  far  more  abundantly 
than  you  sowed  it.  That  law  which  the  Bible  states  so  pow- 
erfully is  eternal  and  immutable.  Every  act  has  a  result.  Now, 
let  us  apply  it  to  a  few  cases.  No  man  on  earth  can  afford  to 
sell  whiskey.  You  plant  saloons  and  you'll  get  a  harvest  of 
drunkards.  Let  me  tell  you  that  every  man  who  sells  liquor 
has  a  drunken  son  or  a  drunken  brother  or  a  drunken  relative. 
Where  are  the  sons  of  liquor  dealers?  To  whom  are  their 
daughters  married?  Look  around  and  see  if  you  can  find  a 
man  who  has  been  in  that  business  who  has  not  a  skeleton  in 
his  family. 

"I  threw  that  challenge  down  once,  and  a  man  said  to  me 
the  next  day:  'I  wasn't  at  your  meeting  last  night,  but  I  un- 
derstand you  made  the  astounding  statement  that  no  man  had 
been  in  the  liquor  business  twenty  years  who  hadn't  the  curse 
in  his  own  family.' 

"  'Yes,'  I  said,  'I  did.' 

"  'It  isn't  true,'  he  said,  'and  I  want  you  to  take  it  back.  My 
father  was  a  rumseller  and  I  am  a  rumseller,  and  the  curse  has 
never  come  into  my  father's  family  or  mine.' 

"I  said,  'What!  two  generations  selHng  this  infernal  stuflf, 
and  the  curse  has  never  come  in  to  the  family!  I  will  inves- 
tigate it.' 

"There  were  two  prominent  citizens  of  the  town  in  the  room 
on  whose  faces  I  noticed  a  peculiar  expression  as  the  man 
was  talking.     After  he  left,  one  of  them  said, 

"  'Do  you  know,  Mr.  Moody,  that  man's  own  brother  was  a 
drunkard  and  committed  suicide  a  few  weeks  ago,  and  left  a 
widow  with  seven  children?     They  are  under  his  roof  now.' 


o 


n 


Rev.  C.  I.  Scufield. 


MR.  MOODY'S  LAST  CAMPAIGN.  305 

"Your  sons  will  be  drunkards,  I  challenge  any  man  who 
has  been  in  the  saloon  business  twenty  years  to  prove  to  me 
that  he  hasn't  a  family  skeleton  in  his  closet. 

"If  you  are  in  that  accursed  business,  take  your  sign  down, 
knock  in  the  heads  of  your  whiskey  barrels  and  let  the  vile 
stuff  into  the  sewers.  You  say  you'll  starve?  Well,  I  would 
like  to  see  a  few  of  such  martyrs.  I  never  found  one  yet.  I 
would  attend  his  funeral.  I  would  give  something  toward  a 
monument  for  him. 

"The  man  who  rents  his  building  for  a  saloon  is  just  as 
bad  as  the  saloon  keeper." 

"Amen,"  said  a  muffled  voice  on  the  stage. 

"What's  that?"  asked  Mr.  Moody,  sharply. 

"He  said  'Amen,'  "  a  dozen  eager  voices  answered. 

"Oh,"  said  Mr.  Moody,  'T  said  and  I  repeat  that  the  saloon 
is  a  curse,  and  the  man  who  rents  his  building  to  a  saloon 
keeper  is  as  bad  as  the  man  who  profits  by  selling  the  whiskey. 
Don't  let  any  man  tell  me  that  liquor  is  not  a  withering  curse." 

Another  pause,  and  Mr.  Moody  began  a  new  subject.  "If 
any  man  in  this  audience  to-night  is  leading  an  impure  life 
his  harvest  will  be  dark  and  bitter.  If  you  rent  your  house 
for  impure  purposes  you  will  live  to  see  the  curse  come  into 
your  own  family.  Every  man  who  leads  an  impure  life  ought 
to  tremble." 

Now  he  lifted  both  hands  at  once  above  his  head  and  began 
to  quake  all  over  his  big  body.  "Oh,  these  vile  lepers  that 
break  up  our  families!  Oh,  these  hideous  creatures!  What 
can  we  do  with  them?  How  shall  we  escape  them?  Think  of 
it,  think  of  it!  Think  of  our  women  whom  they  prey  upon! 
The  most  infernal  thing  in  America  is  the  way  women  are 
treated  when  they  have  been  ruined.  And  the  man.  The  man 
walks  the  street  with  his  head  held  high,  while  she  whose  soul 
he  has  blackened  prowls  about  in  dark  places  in  her  sin  and 
her  shame.  Do  you  tell  me" — his  eyes  were  fierce  and  his 
head  was  bristling — "do  you  tell  me  that  man  will  escape  pun- 
so 


3o6  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

ishment?     No!  No!     Not  on  the  rcapinj:^  day!     He  will  reap 
the  whirlwind  of  God's  wrath  and  man's  scorn." 

THERE  IS  RETRIBUTION. 

He  ended  his  afternoon  sermon  with  a  characteristic  Moody 
story.  It  was  the  simplest  sort  of  a  story,  told  in  the  very  sim- 
plest way.  It  was  a  children's  story.  It  was  about  a  good 
child  and  a  bad  father,  and  if  told  in  print  it  would  seem  very 
commonplace.  But  Mr.  Moody  glorified  and  inspired  it  with 
such  a  power  that  he  seemed  transfigured  by  it.  A  change 
came  over  his  face  as  the  pathetic  nature  of  the  story  appealed 
to  him.  His  hands  hung  helpless  to  his  side  and  the  pink  skin 
of  his  face  began  to  grow  livid.  His  veins  swelled,  his 
cheeks  pufTed  out,  red  rims  formed  about  his  eyelids.  He 
moved  restlessly  about.  He  was  so  direct,  so  wonderfully  in 
earnest.  He  was  so  simple  and  so  truthful.  At  last  he  could 
no  longer  control  himself.  His  breath  was  coming  in  gasps, 
and  now  he  wept,  shaking  the  tears  out  of  his  eyes  with  a  toss 
of  his  head  and  speaking  right  on.  His  bearded,  kindly  face 
wore  an  expression  of  melting  pity  and  love.  It  was  impossi- 
ble to  resist  his  influence.  There  were  five  hundred  handker- 
chiefs busy  in  the  hall. 

"My  friends,  isn't  it  awfully  sad?  Isn't  it  terrible?  Isn't  it 
pitiful  that  it  isn't  ourselves  alone  we  must  make  suffer  when 
we  sin,  but  those  whom  we  love  must  sufifer  with  us?" 

THE  SERMON  AT  NIGHT. 

Mr.  Moody  had  only  half  finished  his  sermon  in  the  after- 
noon. He  continued  it  in  the  evening.  He  stood  on  the  plat- 
form and  looked  out  over  the  arena  floor,  where  white  faces 
strained  lo  hear  and  see  him.  In  his  forty  years  of  preaching 
he  has  spoken  to  many  vast  audiences,  but  this  one  seemed  to 
amaze  him  as  he  looked  it  over  calmly  and  thoughtfully. 

"Look  at  this  audience,"  he  began.  There  were  1,500  out 
side  the  doors,  but  he  did  not  know  that.  "Look  at  the  im- 
mensity of  these  listeners.    See  the  balconies,  dense,  black 


MR.  MOODY'S  LAST  CAMPAIGN.  307 

and  white  with  people."  Here  his  voice  swelled.  "And  every- 
one of  you  is  sowing  his  seed.  What  are  you  sowing?"  He 
paused  and  knitted  his  fingers.  "Hadn't  you  better  be  care- 
ful? I'm  not  a  prophet,  but  I  can  tell  you  what  harvest  you 
will  have  if  you  tell  me  what  you  are  sowing.  If  this  country 
turns  its  Sabbaths  into  holidays  this  country  is  going  down. 
Pretty  soon  you  will  have  to  work  seven  days  in  the  week,  in- 
stead of  six,  if  you  continue  to  desecrate  the  Sabbath.  In 
Paris  the  workingman  gets  $1.25  a  day  and  he  works  the 
whole  week  round.  In  London  the  workingman  gets  higher 
wages  and  he  doesn't  work  on  Sunday.  If  you  give  up  the 
Sabbath  the  great  corporations  will  soon  be  grinding  you 
down.  They'll  be  making  you  work  seven  days  a  week  and 
you  won't  have  any  rest  days. 

"England  stood  up  for  the  Sabbath  and  France  did  not,  and 
where  is  France  to-day?     Down,  down,  down! 

"There  are  some  men  who  are  willing  to  take  all  the  bene- 
fits of  Christianity  and  then  curse  it.  But  with  all  its  imperfec- 
tions it's  the  best  thing  in  the  world  we  have  to-day.  Where 
would  we  be  if  it  were  not  for  Christianity? 

"What  are  you  young  men  sowing?  How  do  you  treat 
your  mothers?  I've  utter  contempt  for  the  young  man  who 
is  disrespectful  to  his  mother.  What  do  your  mothers  do  for 
you  and  what  do  you  do  for  them?  Do  you  talk  disparaging- 
ly of  them?  Why,  young  man,  you  know  if  you  were  taken 
sick  away  from  home  and  your  mother  was  a  thousand  miles 
away  she  would  take  the  first  train  and  come  to  you."  He 
was  hoarse  with  emotion.  He  stamped  the  floor.  "Yes,  and 
she'd  watch  over  you  day  and  night  and  she'd  never  sleep 
while  you  needed  her  care  and  she  would  pluck  that  disease 
from  your  breast  and  put  it  in  her  own,  and  she'd  die  for  you. 
I  have  two  boys  and  I've  tried  to  raise  them  right.  If  one  of 
them  should  go  wrong  it  would  pretty  nigh  kill  me.  I've 
tried  to  raise  them  right,  God  knows,  and  if  ever  I  made  a 
mistake  with  thern  it  was  my  head  and  not  my  heart  that  erred. 


3o8  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

And  I  love  them  as  myself  and  more  than  myself,  and  I'd  die 
for  them.  But  I'm  not  any  different  from  the  average  parent, 
for  they  all  love  their  children  as  I  love  my  boys.  I  heard  of 
a  man  who  put  a  knife  in  his  mother's  heart  and  killed  her  in 
a  second.  And  I  said  he  was  a  prince  compared  with  the  men 
I  have  seen  who  have  come  home  drunk  every  night  and  have 
taken  five  years  to  break  their  mothers'  hearts — to  kill  them 
slowly,  inch  by  inch,  night  by  night.  What  will  be  their  reap- 
ing?" 

STERN  WORDS  OF  WARNING. 

"Would  to  God,"  he  said,  "that  I  could  get  all  of  you  to  take 
a  solemn  oath  to-night  never  to  go  into  a  whiskey  shop  again! 
What  a  triumph  that  would  be!  Why,  it  would  be  the  grand- 
est thing  this  city  ever  saw.  You  have  a  mighty  city  here, 
young  and  powerful,  but  if  this  city  should  resolve  never  again 
to  touch  whiskey  it  would  become  an  imperial  place,  world  re- 
nowned and  all  powerful." 

So  the  sermon  went  on  with  broken  words  and  tears,  with 
tender  appeals  and  warnings.  He  ended  as  usual  with  a  story 
and  then  he  asked  for  a  prayer.  The  prayer  ended,  the  choir 
sang,  and  under  a  most  heavy  and  solemn  sense  of  responsibil- 
ity the  vast  audience  left  the  hall. 

A  WORD  TO  THE  PREACHERS. 

At  the  Monday  afternoon  meeting,  Moody  preached  on 
"The  Bible  and  How  to  Study  It."  He  has  proved  to  his  sat- 
isfaction that  the  Bible  is  not  going  out  of  use.  "More  Bibles 
have  been  printed  and  sold  in  the  last  five  years  "than  were 
read  and  sold  in  the  first  1800  years.  The  Bible  is  read  more 
now  than  ever  before.  It  is  the  study  of  the  Bible  that  we 
need.  The  men  who  don't  study  It"  are  the  ones  who  criti- 
cize it. 

"When  your  hair  is  as  gray  as  mine  and  friend  after  friend 
has  slipped  away  from  you  into  the  grave,"  said  Mr.  Moody, 
holding  his  Bible  high  above  his  head,  "I  say  you  will  want  to 


MR.  MOODY'S  LAST  CAMPAIGN.  309 

believe  in  this  old  book.  You  will  want  to  believe  in  the  res- 
urrection." He  put  the  book  back  on  the  organ  and  stood 
silent  for  a  moment,  "I  would  doubt  the  whole  of  it  rather  than 
a  part  of  it.  Let's  hold  on  to  it  all.  Let's  not  let  any  part  of 
it  go.  It's  too  precious.  But  let's  keep  it  all  and  get  its 
blessings.  I  knew  a  preacher  who  saw  a  sailor  and  asked  him 
if  he  knew  the  philosophy  of  the  wind.  'No,'  answered  the 
sailor,  'but  when  she  blows  I  know  how  to  put  up  my  sails.'  " 

A  pause,  and  then  Mr.  Moody  said  in  a  hoarse,  solemn 
whisper,  "My  friends,  let's  hoist  the  sails  and  get  the  bless- 
ings." Mr.  Moody  leaned  on  the  organ  and  asked  the  minis- 
ters: "Will  you  ministers  allow  me  to  say  a  word  to  you?" 

"Yes,  yes,  say  what  you  want,"  they  answered. 

"Well,  I'm  not  a  prophet,  but  I  have  a  guess  to  make  that  I 
think  will  prove  a  true  prophecy.  You  hear  so  much  nowa- 
days about  the  preacher  of  the  twentieth  century.  Do  you 
know*  what  sort  of  man  he  will  be?  He  will  be  the  sort  of 
preacher  who  opens  his  Bible  and  preaches  out  of  that.  Oh, 
I'm  sick  and  tired  of  this  essay  preaching!  I'm  nauseated  with 
this  'silver  tongued  orator'  preaching!  I  like  to  hear  preach- 
ers and  not  windmills." 

Mr.  Moody's  afternoon  meetings  were  devoted  to  Christian 
people.  In  the  evening  the  gospel  was  preached  to  win  the 
unconverted. 

MONDAY  EVENING. 

The  threatening  weather  on  Monday  evening  reduced  the 
audience  to  nearly  one-half  what  it  was  on  Svinday  night,  but 
the  crowd  drew  nearer  to  him  and  watched  Mr.  Moody  with 
deeper  interest  and  attention.  It  was  thundering  without 
when  he  stepped  forward  and  began  his  sermon  by  asking: 

"Do  you  believe  Jesus  Christ  taught  the  truth  while  on 
earth?  I  wish  everyone  who  believes  that  would  hold  up  his 
hand.  It  seemed  nearly  every  hand  went  up  in  the  hall.  Then 
I  ask  you  this  important  question.  Have  you  been  born  again? 
You  may  answer  it,  each  to  himself. 


310  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

"I  have  no  sympathy  with  the  idea  that  people  are  so  natur- 
ally good  they  don't  need  to  be  born  again.  I've  heard  a  good 
deal  about  these  naturally  good  people.  Did  you  ever  know 
a  man  who  never  did  wrong?  Do  any  of  you  wives  possess 
husbands  that  never  did  wrong?  If  you  do  possess  them  I 
pity  you — for — I — know — him. 

"You  hear  a  great  deal  about  that  wicked  elder  brother  of 
the  Bible.  He  has  left  a  good  many  grandchildren.  Tell  one 
of  these  elder  brothers  about  the  good  things  of  this  world  and 
lie  will  scofY.  Tell  him  of  the  sinners  and  he  will  sneer.  Tell 
him  of  the  poor  fallen  women  who  have  turned  at  last  to  God 
and  he  will  jeer  at  them.  God  pity  the  man  who  cannot  have 
pity  ofi  such  poor  wanderers  returned. 

"You  are  all  afraid  of  what  your  hearts  contain.  You  know 
it  is  not  good.  If  someone  should  advertise  that  he  could 
photograph  with  some  sort  of  an  X-ray  machine  all  that  your 
hearts  contain,  do  you  think  you  would  come  around?  No. 
A  team  of  horses  couldn't  drag  you  to  the  machine.  Dear 
friends,  remember  that  the  heart  is  deceitful  and  desperately 
wicked. 

SATAN  AS  A  CHURCH-GOER. 

"I  believe  that  the  church  is  nearer  to  God  than  any  human 
institution.  But  if  we  put  the  church  in  place  of  God  it  can- 
not save  you.  A  woman  said  to  me:  T'm  all  right.'  'Are 
you?'  said  I.  'And  why  are  you  all  right?'  'Because  I  go  to 
church.'     'So  does  Satan,'  said  I. 

"Church  can't  save  you  any  more  than  good  resolutions  can 
save  you.  If  all  the  good  resolutions  men  have  taken  were 
written  on  parchment  it  would  take  four  nudes  to  haul  them 
along. 

"When  I  was  converted  I  took  blood  out  of  my  veins  and 
I  wrote  out  some  good  resolutions.  I  kept  those  resolutions 
about  as  long  as  it  took  to  draw  the  blood. 

"I  have  been  given  many  blessings,  but  there  is  one  that 
towers  above  all  others  like  a  monument.    It  was  given  me  on 


MR.  MOODY'S  LAST  CAMPAIGN.  311 

the  night  I  was  born  again.  When  we  are  born  again  we  get  a 
divine  nature.  Just  as  we  get  the  nature  of  our  parents  when 
we  are  born  of  them,  so  we  get  the  nature  of  God  when  we 
arc  born  of  Him.  These  things  that  I  say  the  natural  man 
cannot  fully  understand,  l)ut  the  man  of  God  understands 
them.     He  goes  beyond  them  and  reaches  out,  far  out." 

Mr.  IMoody  reached  out  with  both  hands  and  seemed  to 
move  closer  to  his  hearers. 

"Did  you  ever  see  a  young  man  that  had  a  little  heaven  in 
his  own  home,  a  dear  mother  and  sisters?  And  he  leaves 
home  and  gets  into  bad  company  and  goes  down,  down, 
down." 

Mr.  Moody  almost  sank  on  his  knees,  his  palms  turned  to- 
ward the  platform.  "He  cleans  spittoons  in  a  whiskey  shop. 
A  friend  finds  him  there  and  tells  him  his  mother  wants  him. 
But  he  won't  go.  He  says  he  must  have  his  whiskey.  He 
don't  want  to  go!     He  won't  go,  he  says." 

Mr.  Moody  fairly  screamed  the  words.  "He-must-have- 
his-whiskey!"  A  pause.  "But  God,  if  He  will,  can  take  that 
drunkard  up,  up.  up"  (Mr.  Moody  held  both  hands  aloft) 
"above  the  cherubim"  (he  reached  higher),  "above  the  sera- 
phim, to  His  own  white  throne." 

A  number  of  electric  globes  that  had  been  dark  suddenly 
glowed  with  light.  Mr.  Moody,  ever  artful,  took  advantage 
of  the  illustration.  "They  are  turning  on  the  lights.  I  wish 
God  would  turn  on  His  lights  in  your  hearts." 

The  effect  of  Mr.  Moody's  sermon  and  passionate  appeal 
was  seen  in  the  throng  that  passed  out  of  Convention  Hall  and 
crossed  the  street  into  the  Second  Presbyterian  Church  for 
the  after  meeting.  The  church  was  lighted  as  if  for  a  prayer 
meeting  and  the  lower  seats  were  quickly  filled.  Tt  was  after 
nine  o'clock.  ]\Ir.  Moody  called  them  together  from  the  hall 
that  he  might  "get  a  little  closer"  to  them.  They  were  still 
wrestling  with  the  eflfects  of  his  sermon  to  them  at  the  hall,  and 
were  half  willing,  half  unwilling,  to  confess  to  the  power  of 


312  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

his  influence.  The  church  was  silent  and  solemn.  The  meet- 
ing was  "for  those  who  are  not  Christians."  There  were  a 
good  many  who  were  not  Christians. 

"You  never  can  come  to  Christ  with  as  few  sins  in  your 
souls  as  you  can  come  to-night,"  said  Mr.  Moody.  He  waited 
to  let  the  words  sink.  "Don't  put  it  off,"  he  asked.  "If  you 
could  go  six  months  without  sinning  you  would  still  have  the 
sin  of  procrastination  on  your  souls.  Put  the  question  to 
yourself  to-night.  Answer  it.  Have  you  the  Son  of  God  with 
you  to-night?  Have  you  the  spirit,  the  humble,  joyful  spirit?" 

The  evangelist  had  lowered  his  voice  after  his  powerful  ser- 
mon in  the  hall.  A  whisper  could  have  been  heard  in  the 
church,  it  seemed  so  small,  the  walls  so  close  together. 

Again  Mr.  Moody  asked,  "Will  some  one  say,  T  will  trust 
in  the  Lord  to-night,  and  not  be  afraid?'  Will  some  one  say 
simply,  T  will?'  The  door  hangs  on  one  hinge.  Will  you 
push  open  the  door  and  let  Christ  in?     Will  you?     Will  you?" 

A  VOICE  SAID,  "I  WILL." 

He  stopped  and  waited.  The  church  was  like  a  tomb,  for 
no  one  would  reply.  At  last  a  voice  far  back  said,  "I  will." 
Mr.  Moody  breathed  hard  in  his  relief.  "I  will,"  said  anoth- 
er. The  evangelist  smiled.  "I  will  try,"  said  another. 
"What's  that?"  asked  Mr.  Moody.     "I  will  try,"  said  the  man. 

"Now  listen,  my  friend,"  said  Mr.  Moody,  tapping  his  Bi- 
ble. "It  is  better  to  say  T  will'  than  T  will  try.'  If  you  'will' 
you  purpose  to  succeed,  if  you  'will  try'  you  may  make  ex- 
cuses for  your  failure." 

"I  will,"  said  the  man. 

Other  voices  throughout  the  church  answered,  "I  will." 
With  a  few  words  of  tender  prayer  for  these  anxious  hearts, 
Mr.  Moody  closed  this  service  and  with  heart  and  faith  great- 
ly strengthened  returned  to  his  hotel. 

TUESDAY    EVENING. 
The  Mission  of  the  Son  of  Man.     On  Tuesday  night  Mr. 


MR.  MOODY'S  LAST  CAMPAIGN.  313 

Moody  preached  from  the  text,  "For  the  Son  of  Man  is  come 
to  seek  and  to  save  that  which  was  lost."     Luke  19:10. 

Upon  this  great  theme  he  spoke  in  part  as  foHows: 

"Some  of  you  beheve  that  God  never  sought  you.  But 
there  is  not  a  man  or  woman  or  even  a  child  that  God  has  not 
sought  for.  He  is  always  seeking  you,  and  so  many  of  you 
He  seeks  in  vain.  Can  you  honestly  say  God  has  not  sought 
you?  Do  you  ever  lie  awake  at  night,  unable  to  sleep,  and 
hear  the  still,  small  voice  of  your  conscience  speaking  to  you? 
Have  you  ever  stood  at  the  grave  of  one  you  have  loved  in  life 
while  you  felt  your  heart  in  dumb  agony  appeal  to  God?  And 
do  you  say  God  has  not  been  seeking  you?  It  is  your  fault 
that  He  has  not  found  you.  It  is  because  you  have  barred  the 
door  of  your  heart. 

"You  men  say  you  cannot  pray.  I  think  if  you  were  blind, 
like  the  man  in  the  Bible,  and  could  get  sight  by  praying  you 
could  pray  mighty  easily." 

Mr.  Aloody  told  the  story  of  the  rich  man  who  climbed  the 
tree  to  see  Christ  pass  by.  "It  isn't  often,"  he  said,  with  quaint 
humor,  "that  a  rich  man  climbs  a  tree  to  see  a  street  preacher 
go  by. 

"You  think,  many  of  you,  that  God  is  indififerent  to  you,  has 
forgotten  that  you  live.  He  knows  your  name,  che  street  you 
live  in  and  the  number  of  your  house. 

"A  strange  thing  about  true  Christians  is  that  they  are  al- 
ways happy  men.  Did  you  ever  hear  of  Christian  people 
who  received  Christ  sadly?  I  ask  you  ministers  sitting  below 
me  here — did  you  ever  see  a  man  confess  Christ  with  a  sad 
face?" 

"No,"  said  the  ministers  in  a  chorus.    "He  is  always  glad." 

"Is  there  a  sinner  in  this  hall  to-night?"  asked  ]\Ir.  Moody, 
straightening  his  figure.  "Let  him  remember  that  Christ  left 
His  heavenly  home  and  His  Father  to  come  down  to  you,  to 
put  His  arm  under  you,  to  lift  you  up. 

"Do  you  know  why  so  few  persons  are  saved?     It's  because 


314  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

you  can  induce  so  few  to  believe  they  are  lost.  What  is  it  to 
be  lost?  It's  to  be  out  of  God's  way.  So  many  of  you  stay 
out  of  God's  way,  but  you  won't  believe  you  are  lost.  It's 
such  a  hard  thing  to  find  men  who  are  lost. 

FEW  WILL  ADMIT  GUILT. 

"If  we  could  only  get  the  confession  of  a  man  that  he  is  lost, 
it  wouldn't  be  long  before  he  would  be  saved.  If  a  man  ain't 
lost  what  docs  he  need  of  a  Savior?  But  oh,  how  refreshing 
it  is  to  find  one  who  will  admit  that  he  is  lost!  If  you  will  ad- 
mit that  you  are  a  sinner,  I  can  tell  you  there's  One  mighty  to 
save — One  who  came  to  save  sinners. 

"I  was  invited  one  day,  some  years  ago,  to  visit  and  preach 
in  the  Tombs  prison.  New  York.  I  had  supposed  that  I 
should  address  the  prisoners  face  to  face,  as  I  used  to  talk  to 
the  prisoners  in  the  chapels  in  most  of  our  jails.  But  when  I 
got  there,  I  found  I  had  to  stand  on  a  little  iron  railing  run- 
ning from  one  tier  of  cells  to  another.  There  was  a  tier  above 
and  one  below,  and  one  on  the  same  level  with  me.  There  I 
talked  to  a  great,  long,  narrow  passageway — to  gates,  to  bars, 
and  to  brick  walls.  It  was  pretty  hard  preaching.  I  had 
never  attempted  to  preach  in  that  way  before.  I  did  not 
know  when  I  got  through  with  it,  how  they  had  received  me; 
and  so  I  thought  I  would  go  and  see  them.  I  went  to  the 
first  cell-door  and  looked  in.  I  found  the  men  playing  euchre. 
I  suppose  they  had  been  playing  all  the  time  that  I  was 
preaching,  and  took  no  interest  in  the  sermon.  I  looked  into 
the  window,  and  said,  'How  is  it  with  you  here?'  'O  chap- 
lain, we  do  not  want  you  to  have  a  bad  idea  of  us.'  I  said  to 
myself,  'There  is  no  one  here  to  be  saved,  for  there  is  no  one 
lost.'     And  T  got  away  as  c|uick  as  I  could. 

I  went  to  another  cell.  There  were  three  or  four  men  in 
there;  and  T  said,  'How  is  it  with  you  here?'  'Well,  stranger, 
we  will  tell  you.  We  got  into  bad  company,  and  the  men 
that  did  the  deed  got  clear  and  we  got  caught.'     I  said  to  my- 


MR.  MOODY'S  LAST  CAMPAIGN.  315 

self,  'There  is  no  one  here  for  Christ  to  save,  for  there  is  no 
one  lost.'  y\n(l  I  went  alon<j  to  the  next  cell;  and  then  I  said, 
'Well,  my  friends,  how  is  it  with  you?'  One  of  them  said,  'A 
false  witness  went  to  court  and  swore  a  lie  upon  me.'  He 
was  perfectly  innocent  and  ouj:^ht  not  to  be  there.  I  went  on 
to  the  next  cell,  looked  in,  and  said,  'Well,  my  friends,  how  is 
it  with  you?'  They  were  innocent,  thank  God!'  But  the  man 
that  did  the  deed  looked  very  much  like  them.  The  people 
thought  they  were  the  men  and  they  got  caught.  They  were 
perfectly  innocent.  They  were  not  the  men.  I  went  along 
to  the  next  cell.  But  no  sooner  did  I  ask  the  same  question 
than  they  said  they  had  not  had  their  trial.  They  were  go- 
ing to  have  it  that  week,  and  they  would  be  out  on  next  Sun- 
day. And  so  I  went  on.  I  never  found  so  many  innocent 
men.  They  were  all  innocent.  I  found  a  great  many  inno- 
cent men  under  lock  and  key,  and  they  were  all  trying  to  jus- 
tify themselves.  There  was  no  one  guilty  but  the  constables, 
the  justices,  or  magistrates.     They  were  the  guilty  ones. 

"I  got  discouraged.  I  thought  I  would  give  it  up;  but  I 
kept  on,  and  I  found  one  man  in  a  cell  alone.  He  had  his 
elbows  on  his  knees,  and  had  his  head  buried  in  his  hands.  As 
I  looked  in,  I  could  see  the  streams  of  tears  running  down 
upon  his  cheeks.  They  were  the  first  tears  I  had  seen.  It 
did  me  good  to  look  at  them.  I  said,  'My  friend,  how  is  it 
with  you  here?'  He  looked  up.  It  was  a  look  of  remorse 
and  despair.  He  said,  'O,  sir,  my  sins  are  more  than  I  can 
bear.'  'Thank  God  for  that!'  said  I.  'Thank  God  for  that? 
Ain't  you  the  man  that's  been  preaching  to  us?'  'Yes,  sir.' 
'And  yet  I  thought  you  said  you  was  a  friend  to  the  prisoner; 
and  you  are  glad  that  my  sins  are  more  than  I  can  bear?' 
'Yes.'  'Yes?  Then  you  are  a  queer  kind  of  friend.  How 
is  it  that  you  are  glad  my  sins  are  more  than  I  can  bear?'  'I 
am  glad  that  they  are  more  than  you  can  bear.  For  if  they 
are  more  than  you  can  bear,  you  can  cast  them  on  the  Lord 
Jesus.'     'He  will  not  bear  my  sins.     Why,  I  am  the  worst 


3i6  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

man  livins^  to-day.'  And  he  l)egan  enumerating  his  sins,  and 
what  a  load  it  was  for  him  to  bear. 

It  was  refreshing  to  stand  there  and  hear  him  tell  me.  It 
was  the  Lord  Jesus  that  had  got  into  that  cell  and  into  that 
man's  heart,  and  I  told  him  so;  then  I  told  him  to  pray  to  God 
to  forgive  him  and  to  take  away  his  sin.  He  thought  God 
would  never  forgive  such  a  sinner  as  he  was.  I  told  him:  'You 
can  get  all  those  sins,  multiplied  by  ten  thousand,  forgiven; 
because  you  have  committed  probably  ten  thousand  more 
sins  than  you  have  thought  of.  You  can  sum  them  all  up, 
and  write  underneath,  'The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ,  his  Son, 
cleanseth  from  all  sin.'  And  I  stood  there  and  preached  the 
gospel  to  that  thirsty  soul.  He  seemed  to  drink  it  in.  I  said, 
'Let  us  get  down  here  and  pray.'  And  we  did,  he  inside  and  I 
outside.  And  after  I  got  through  prayer  I  said,  'My  friend, 
now.  you  pray.'  'I  pray!  It  would  be  blasphemy  for  me  to 
pray — for  a  wretch  lilce  me  to  call  upon  God.  I  said  to  him, 
'Call  upon  God.  Ask  for  mercy.  That's  what  you  want. 
Ask  him  to  have  mercy  upon  you.'  The  poor  wretch  could 
not  lift  his  eyes  towards  heaven.  He  knelt  down  on  the 
pavement,  and  all  he  could  say  was,  'God  be  merciful  to  me,  a 
vile  wretch!'  After  his  prayer  I  put  my  hand  through  the 
window  in  the  door.  He  got  hold  of  it  and  shook  it.  and  a 
hot  tear  fell  on  my  hand.  That  tear  seemed  to  ])urn  into  my 
very  soul.  I  said:  'I  am  going  to  the  hotel  between  nine  and 
twelve  o'clock.  I  want  you  to  join  in  prayer,  and  make  up 
your  mind  that  you  will  not  sleep  to-night  till  you  know.' 

That  night  I  got  much  interested  in  prayer  for  the  man. 
My  heart  was  so  overborne  that  I  could  not  go  back  to  Chi- 
cago without  going  down  to  the  prison  to  see  him.  I  went 
down,  and  I  got  the  governor  of  the  Tombs  to  let  me  in,  and 
I  went  to  his  cell;  and  when  I  got  there  and  saw  him  the  re- 
morse and  despair  had  all  disappeared.  It  was  all  gone.  His 
face  was  lit  up  with  a  heavenly  glow.  He  seized  my  hand,  and 
tears  of  joy  began  to  flow.     He  pressed  my  hand  and  shook 


MR.  MOODY'S  LAST  CAMPAIGN.  317 

it,and  said :  'I  believe  I  am  the  happiest  man  in  the  whole  city  of 
New  York.  I  thought  when  they  brought  me  to  this  prison 
I  should  never  go  out  again.  I  thought  I  never  could  walk 
down  Broadway  again.  I  thought  I  never  could  see  my  godly 
mother  again.  Now  I  thank  God  that  they  brought  me;  for 
if  they  had  not  I  would  never  have  known  Christ.'  He  said, 
when  he  prayed  the  "Lord  Jesus  heard  his  prayer.  I  asked 
him  what  time  of  the  night  he  thought  it  was;  and  he  said 
he  thought  it  was  about  midnight  that  the  Lord  Jesus  came 
into  that  cell  and  saved  his  soul.  My  dear  friend,  can  you 
tell  me  why  it  was  that  God  came  into  that  prison,  and  passed 
by  cell  after  cell,  and  set  that  one  captive  free?  It  was  because 
he  took  his  place  as  a  poor  lost  sinner,  and  asked  for  mercy. 
The  moment  sinners  do  that  and  cry  for  mercy,  they  will 
get  it." 

"You  don't  change  human  nature  a  bit  by  locking  it  behind 
the  bars.  Those  men  wouldn't  admit  they  were  guilty  and 
you  won't  admit  you  are  lost." 

Here  are  a  few  of  Mr.  Moody's  remarks  taken  from  his 
stories: 

"I'm  glad  to  find  a  man  whose  sins  are  more  than  he  can 
bear.  For  he  will  then  cast  them  on  Him  who  will  bear  them 
for  him." 

"If  a  thing  touches  my  heart  I  am  sure  it  must  touch  the 
heart  of  God,  for  He  is  infinitely  more  tender  than  I." 

"If  any  of  you  feel  like  making  a  prayer  make  it  while  you 
have  the  feeling.  Make  it  now.  For  it  is  now  that  He  will 
Usten  to  it  with  the  most  pity  for  your  state." 

There  was  a  story  to  tell  before  the  sermon  ended.  It  was 
about  the  rich  father  and  the  disinherited  son,  who,  dying, 
asked  his  parent  for  forgiveness.  Mr.  Moody's  face  grew 
red  and  his  eyes  swam  in  tears  as  he  described  the  father  when 
he  heard  his  son's  plea  for  forgiveness:  "Why,  I'd  have  for- 
given him  long  ago  if  I  had  known  he  wanted  forgiveness." 

There  was  a  pause,    Mr.  Moody  stretched  both  arms  out. 


3i8  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

"Sinner,"  he  called,  "that's  what  Christ  says  to  you  and  to  me. 
'I'd  forgiven  you  long  ago,  my  child,  if  you  had  wanted  for- 
giveness.' " 

The  evangelist  shook  his  tears  from  his  face  and  moved 
about  restlessly  in  his  emotion.  "Thank  God  for  the  gospel 
that  will  reach  down  to  the  darkest  pits  of  hell  to  lift  up  man. 
Thank  God  for  it." 

He  was  silent  again,  and  then  he  ended  his  sermon  with 
these  words:  "Let  me  be  silent.  The  human  heart  is  too  hard 
for  the  human  voice  to  penetrate  it.  Son  of  God,  do  Thou 
knock  at  the  door  of  every  heart." 

At  the  close  of  the  sermon  another  meeting  was  held  for  in- 
quirers, with  many  responses  when  Mr.  Moody  called  for  an 
open  profession  of  the  acceptance  of  Christ. 

WEDNESDAY  EVENING. 

For  the  second  time  since  the  meetings  began,  Conven- 
tion liall  was  overflowed  on  Wednesday  evening,  and  the  ush- 
ers were  obliged  to  close  the  doors  on  hundreds  who  wished 
to  hear  the  great  evangelist.  Every  seat  was  taken  and  the 
standing  space  in  the  rear  was  filled  with  people.  The  big 
American  flag  at  the  south  end  of  the  hall  was  let  down  like 
a  curtain,  and  no  one  was  allowed,  after  the  sermon  began,  to 
pass  in  or  out  of  the  building.  Twenty  thousand  persons  heard 
Mr.  Moody  preach  that  day,  eight  thousand  in  the  afternoon, 
and  twelve  thousand  in  the  evening.  A  religious  spirit  held 
the  great  crowds  and  made  them  silent  and  attentive.  At 
times  during  a  pause  in  the  evening  sermon  the  emotion  of  the 
twelve  thousand  seemed  to  choke  it,  and  a  heavy  breathing 
could  be  heard.  Men  sat  with  heads  uplifted  and  looked  at 
the  evangelist,  or  they  hung  their  heads  and  buried  their 
faces  in  their  hands. 

Mr.  Moody  seemed  to  come  closer  to  his  immense  audience 
than  at  any  time  since  the  meetings  began.  He  controlled  his 
hearers.    Times  v^ere  when  the  twelve  thousand  seemed  to 


MR.  MOODY'S  LAST  CAMPAIGN.  319 

be  wiping  their  eyes  at  once;  times  were  when  they  laughed 
at  once.  To  control  such  a  crowd  and  make  it  docile,  to 
make  it  follow  and  obey,  that  is  indeed  a  triumph. 

"I  think  I  got  pretty  close  to  you  last  night,"  said  Mr. 
Moody.  "I've  noticed  when  a  hush  comes  over  an  audience 
and  all  seem  to  be  listening,  that  God  is  moving  it.  I  dont 
believe  that  God  would  have  brought  this  vast  assembly  to- 
gether to-night  unless  he  wished  to  help  it.  I  believe  He 
moved  your  hearts  a  Httle  last  night." 

With  this  brief  introduction  Mr.  Moody  began  his  sermon, 
but  he  looked  exhausted.  His  face  was  flushed  and  sweat- 
ing, but  the  inspiration  of  his  great  audience  helped  to  sus- 
tain him  during  his  masterly  effort: 

"I  want  to  turn  your  attention  to-night  to  a  passage  of 
scripture  found  in  Psalm  85:5,  which  reads  as  follows:  'I  will 
hear  what  God,  the  Lord,  will  speak,  for  He  will  speak  peace 
unto  His  people,  and  let  them  not  turn  against  Him.'  Now 
if  every  man  and  woman  will  keep  his  or  her  ears  open,  and 
let  themselves  be  spoken  to,  I  believe  God's  voice  will  be 
heard  by  every  one  in  this  vast  crowd.  God  is  moving  in  this 
body  of  people,  and  it  needs  but  a  listening  spirit  to  hear  Him 
and  be  taught  by  Him  the  ways  of  eternal  life.  Listen  for  His 
still,  small  voice,  as  the  great  crowd  sits  quiet  and  submissive 
beneath  the  weight  of  His  presence.  To-night  1  am  going  to 
give  you  three  texts,  which  I  am  going  to  bring  home  to  you 
all.  Here  they  are.  They  are  found  in  the  first  chapter  of 
John's  gospel. 

"The  first  is  a  question,  the  second  an  exhortation,  and  the 
third  a  command.  'What  seek  ye?'  Jesus  asked  lliat  of  two 
men.  It  was  about  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  and  John 
the  Baptist  stood  on  the  bank  of  the  Jordan  river,  with  his 
disciples  grouped  about  him.  Only  that  day  had  he  baptized 
Christ  in  the  river,  and  had  pointed  Him  out  to  his  dis- 
ciples, saying,  'Behold,  the  Lamb  of  God,  who  taketh  away  the 
sins  of  the  world,'  and  this  day  Andrew  and  James  had  fol^ 


320  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

lowed  Christ  as  he  left  the  crowd  to  go  to  His  home.  And 
when  He  saw  them  He  said,  'What  seek  ye?'  Where  dwellest 
Thou?'  They  learned  and  never  left  Him.  They  followed 
Him  through  all  His  years  of  teaching,  to  Gethsemane,  into 
the  wilderness,  to  the  Mount  of  Transfiguration;  one  of  them 
went  to  his  death  in  a  horrible  manner  for  Him,  and  the  other 
outlived  all  the  others  of  the  twelve.  These  two  men  got 
what  others  did  not  get  that  day,  for  some  ceased  from  follow- 
ing Him,  because  they  would  not  take  up  this  cross.  Do  you 
think  Christ  was  willing  to  be  more  to  John  and  Andrew  that 
day,  or  to  Peter,  than  He  was  to  any  others  of  the  men  who 
came  to  Him,  and  went  away?  No,  indeed,  He  was  not. 
Christ  never  disappoints  any  one.  Did  you  ever  hear  of 
Christ  disappointing  any  one  or  going  back  on  any  one?  Has 
he  failed  you,  when  you  wanted  Him? 

"He  never  goes  back  on  a  friend.  I  have  the  first  man  or 
woman  to  find  whom  Christ  ever  failed.  He  is  what  you  want 
Him  to  be,  and  all  you  want  to  make  of  Him.  He  can  be  all 
your  life  if  you  want  Him  to  be.  Some  follow  Him  for  what 
they  can  get  out  of  it;  some  for  what  signs  they  can  see.  'I'd 
just  like  to  see  Him  cast  out  a  devil,'  said  some,  'just  to  see 
the  devil  run.'  'I  just  wish  I  could  see  a  blind  man  cured,' 
said  another.  'I  never  did  see  anything  like  that.  It  must 
be  fine.'  But  some  followed  Christ  because  of  what  they  could 
get.  Do  you  remember  how,  one  day,  as  the  great  crowd 
stood  about  Him,  He  accused  them  of  seeking  the  'loaves  and 
fishes'?  And  how  many  must  have  come  out  the  nex*-  day 
just  to  see  the  sight  of  the  strange  bread  and  fish  that  He  had 
created.  'Say,'  said  one,  'I  hear  that  yesterday  this  fellow 
made  bread  out  here.  Did  you  see  any  of  it?'  'Yes.'  'Did 
you  taste  any  of  it?'  'Yes.'  'How  did  it  taste?'  'Best  I  ever 
tasted  in  my  life.'  'I  would  like  to  taste  bread  that  never  had 
come  from  a  wheat  field,  or  fish  that  never  had  been  in  the 
water.  I  wonder  if  it  is  like  the  manna  our  fathers  ate  in  the 
wilderness?'    They  did  not  come  for  His  teachings.    Some 


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MR.  MOODY'S  LAST  CAMPAIGN.  321 

wanted  political  place  in  the  kingdom  they  thought  He  would 
establish  on  the  earth,  and  when  they  learned  the  kingdom 
would  be  a  spiritual  kingdom,  they  left  disappointed.  Those 
things  were  too  far  beyond  them. 

"Others  went  because  the  crowd  went.  Alone  they  would 
never  have  taken  a  single  step.  They  were  cowards.  But 
whatever  way  the  crowds  went,  they  followed.  When  the  mul- 
titude spread  roses  in  His  path,  and  palm  leaves  and  shouted 
Hosannah!  they  shouted  too,  and  when  the  same  crowd  some 
days  later,  cried  out  to  crucify  Him,  these  same  people  cried 
out  to  crucify!  crucify!  But  thank  God,  there  were  some  few 
in  the  great  crowds  who  followed  Him  for  profit,  or  curiosity 
or  weak  mindness,  who  followed  Him  for  His  own  sake.  And 
in  the  great  crowd  here  to-night  there  are  some  who  seek 
Him  honestly  for  His  own  sake.  And  I  am  sure  if  I  could 
canvass  this  vast  crowd  I  could  find  just  as  many  peculiar 
reasons  why  you  come  out  here  to-night.  'What  seek  ye?' 
You  man  up  there  in  the  gallery,  what  seek  you?  If  I  could 
but  a.'tk  your  conscience  why  you  came  here  there  would  be 
some  strange  replies  given.  Tell  me,  conscience,  what 
brou.fjht  this  man  here  to-night? 

"ViHiat  seek  you?  What  seek  you?  Are  you  one  of  the 
few  ivho  came  to  seek  Christ  or  one  of  the  many  who  follow 
for  1  he  loaves  and  fishes?  Come,  what  seek  you?  One  man 
up  fhere  in  the  gallery  says,  I  believe,  'I  didn't  come  here  to 
see  you,  anyway,  and  I  don't  care  if  you  know  it.  I'd  get  out 
novr  if  I  could.'  Well,  I'm  glad  you're  here,  anyway,  even  if 
you  didn't  come  to  see  me.  Another  man  down  there  came 
to  fee  the  crowd.  Some  one  told  him  it  was  a  great  sight  to 
see  so  many  people  together,  and  now  he  has  seen  the  crowd 
he  is  ready  to  go  home.  Well,  I'm  glad  you're  here.  At  one  of 
my  meetings  in  Philadelphia  a  man  came  two  hours  early  so 
he  could  see  3,000  empty  chairs  on  one  floor.  Some  one  told 
him  it  was  a  great  sight,  so  he  walked  in  when  the  doors  were 
opened,  ar>d  ran  to  the  front  so  he  could  see  the  3,000  empty 
21 


322  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

seats.  And  he  saw  them.  Then  he  thought  he  would  see  the 
people  who  wanted  to  be  saved,  and  sat  down  on  the  front 
row.  That  man  was  saved  that  night.  One  down  in  front 
here  came  to  please  his  wife.  She  has  been  after  him  ever 
since  I  came  to  the  city  and  just  to  get  rid  of  her  everlasting 
nagging,  came,  and  now  he  is  not  coming  any  more.  Well, 
I'm  glad  you're  here.  You  ought  to  be  glad  your  wife  loves 
you  enough  to  urge  you  to  come.  Another  man  over  there 
came  just  to  say  he  had  heard  Moody  once,  'so  I  could  tell 
my  friends.' 

"Another  came,  because  he  had  no  place  else  to  go.  I'm 
glad  you're  all  here,  even  if  you  didn't  have  any  better  motives 
to  bring  you  here.  But  there  are  some  who  came,  saying 
as  the  Greeks  said  to  Philip,  'Sir,  we  would  see  Jesus.' 

"Let  me  tell  you  something  about  seeking  Jesus.  In  Isa- 
iah 55:6  it  reads  'Seek  ye  the  Lord  while  He  may  be  found.' 
Now  he  did  not  say  anything  about  seeking  pleasure  or  gain, 
or  wealth  or  anything  else,  but  he  said,  'Seek  the  Lord  while 
He  may  be  found.'  If  you  want  God  you  can  find  Him.  I 
went  down  to  a  man  once  in  a  meeting  who  was  standing  with 
his  hands  in  his  pockets  and  looking  on.  I  said,  "My  friend, 
are  you  a  Christian?'  'Well,'  he  said,  'I — I  believe  not,'  and 
swung  his  foot  back  and  forth.  'Do  you  want  to  be?'  'Well,' 
and  the  foot  swung  back  and  forth  again,  'I  don't  have  no  ob- 
jections.' (Laughter.)  A  man  must  be  in  earnest  to  find 
Christ.  If  you  seek  Him  you  will  find  Hinj,  but  you  won't 
find  Him  unless  you  do  seek  Him. 

"Do  you  ministers  believe  Jesus  can  be  found  here  to- 
night?" 

The  ministers  on  the  stage  below  Mr.  Moody  answered  in 
chorus,  "Yes,  sir;  we  do." 

"Does  this  choir  around  me  believe  Jesus  can  be  found 
here  to-night?" 

"Yes,  sir,"  answered  the  choir. 

"Then  find  Him!"  thundered  Mr.  Moody.  "Oh,  find  Him 


MR.  MOODY'S  LAST  CAMPAIGN.  323 

now  and  let  the  world  go  by  you.  The  time  is  coming  when 
one  promise  of  the  Bible  will  outweigh  all  the  world.  Is  there 
a  man  here  who  cannot  pray  for  his  salvation?  Can't  you 
even  say,  'God  be  merciful  to  me,  a  sinner?'  Wouldn't  it  be 
a  grand  thing  if  everyone  in  this  hall  to-night,  wouldn't  it  be 
magnificent  if  all  this  multitude" — and  Mr.  Moody  looked 
from  gallery  to  gallery  and  out  across  the  far-reaching  row  of 
faces  in  the  arena,  "if  all  this  multitude  would  raise  its  voice 
and  cry  ,'Lord,  help  me!'  " 

He  stopped  and  considered  what  a  triumph  that  would  be. 
He  thought  it  over,  all  alone,  standing  there  in  sight  of  them 
all.  Then  he  shook  his  gray  head.  "I've  cried  those  words 
so  many  times  myself,  'Lord  help  me;  Lord  help  me,  help  me 
and  show  me  how  to  ^^reach.'  " 

He  changed  his  attitude  and  expression.  Holding  out  both 
arms  he  cried,  "All  that  are  here  who  want  God's  help  say 
aloud,  'Lord  help  me.'  " 

He  waited,  expectant.  A  feeble  few,  half  ashamed,  echoed 
the  words,  "Lord  help  me." 

"Again!"  commanded  the  evangelist. 

The  second  reply  was  much  more  powerful  than  the  first. 
"Lord — help — me"  answered  several  hundreds  of  voices. 
A  MIGHTY  CHORUS  ANSWERED. 

Mr.  Moody  dropped  his  arms. 

"Do  you  believe  He  heard  you?" 

"Yes,"  replied  those  who  had  repeated  his  words. 

"He  is  here  to-night,"  said  Mr.  Moody,  solemnly.  "He  is 
listening  to  you.  Oh,  what  a  sight!  All  these  people  cry- 
ing on  the  Lord  for  help!  Let  us  all  say,  'Lord,  remember 
me.' " 

A  mighty  chorus  echoed  back:  "Lord — remember — me." 

"Do  you  believe  He  will  do  it?" 

"Yes,"  answered  the  voices. 

It  seemed  as  if  the  hall  vibrated  to  the  steel  trusses  and  the 
wooden  railings  with  that  answer,  it  was  so  strong. 


324  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

Mr.  Moody  lifted  his  head  and  closed  his  eyes.  "Oh,  let  the 
dew  descend  now.  Let  Thy  grace  descend  now  on  these  peo- 
ple, Lord,"  he  ejaculated.  "Man,  woman,  bow  your  heads 
jfiow.  Say  to  yourselves,  'Lamb  of  God,  take  my  sins,'  and 
He  will  take  them." 

Silence  held  the  12,000.  Then  Mr.  Moody  resumed  his 
preaching. 

"I  never  saw  the  man  who  put  Christ  first  in  his  life  that 
hasn't  succeeded.  That  sort  of  man  always  comes  right.  So 
many  say,  'Let  me  get  established  in  business  first  and  I'll 
seek  the  Lord  afterwards.'  God  says 'No!  Seek  my  kingdom 
first.'  Make  the  kingdom  of  God  your  first  thought.  Oh, 
my  friends,  make  it  first.  It  is  the  safest  thing  to  acquire.  It 
is  the  best  thing.     It  is  the  one  thing  worth  having." 

He  was  laboring  hard  for  breath  and  his  eyes  ran  over  with 
tears.  *Tt  is  the  one  divine  thing  on  earth  to  acquire.  Oh, 
seek  it,  my  friends!" 

The  audience  was  weeping,  too.  Handkerchiefs  were  out 
all  over  the  hall.  Mr.  Moody  told  how  he  had  once  taken  a 
pardon  to  a  woman  in  prison.  He  described  her  emotion 
when  he  anounced  to- the  crowd  of  prisoners  that  she  would 
be  freed.  The  story  finished,  he  raised  his  voice  to  a  higher 
key,  and  said: 

"Friends,  supposing  I  should  come  to  you  to-night  and  tell 
you  that  before  I  came  from  my  hotel  a  heavenly  messenger 
came  down  to  me  and  gave  me  a  pardon  from  God  for  one  of 
you.  Would  you  be  eager  to  know  what  one  of  you  was  par- 
doned? Yet,  I  have  a  pardon,  not  for  one  of  you,  but  for  all 
the  sinners  in  this  house.  Will  you  take  it?  Oh,  take  it  from 
me  now!  Oh,  seek  God  now.  He  is  here  among  you.  He 
is  not  far  away." 

WEAKENED  BY  OVERWORK. 

Mr.  Moody  appeared  at  times  during  the  sermon  hardly 
able  to  support  himself.     Now  he  almost  toppled  over  from 


MR.  MOODY'S  LAST  CAMPAIGN.  325 

weakness  and  now  he  held  on  to  the  organ  to  support  himself. 

''Let  all  who  desire  Christ's  forgiveness  for  their  sins  go 
across  the  street  to  the  church  and  fall  on  their  knees  and  ask 
their  Lord's  forgiveness."  With  this  abrupt  ending,  Mr. 
Moody  sank  back  in  his  seat. 

Dr.  Xeel  conducted  the  after  service  on  account  of  the 
fact  that  Mr.  Moody  was  completely  exhausted  and  obliged  to 
seek  his  room  and  rest.  The  interest  in  the  meetings  contin- 
ued unabated,  and  there  was  quite  a  large  number  of  people 
who  sought  assistance  and  aid  in  public  prayer  and  testimony, 
who  never  before  had  done  it.  The  church  was  filled  and  peo- 
ple were  standing  all  about  the  sides  of  the  room,  while  the 
ministers  and  Christian  workers  were  busily  at  work  among 
the  people,  leading  them  to  accept  the  salvation  of  Christ.  In 
these  overflow  meetings  was  shown  the  result  of  Mn  Moody's 
preaching,  as  every  service  showed  an  increased  number  of 
men  and  women  seeking  the  light. 

THURSDAY  EVENING. 

The  fateful  evening  had  arrived,  the  last  sermon  was  about 
to  be  delivered,  the  foolish  excuses  that  men  make  for  not 
becoming  Christians,  were  once  more  to  be  brushed  aside, 
and  the  last  appeal  in  Mr.  Moody's  last  campaign  was  to  thrill 
many  hearts  and  yet  of  all  that  this  hour  was  to  bring  to  that 
great  throng  there  was  not  the  slightest  premonition. 

]\Ir.  Moody  seemed  to  have  recovered  from  his  exhaustion 
though  naturally  wearied  by  his  exacting  labors. 

After  the  opening  hymn,  "Abide  With  Me,"  Mr.  Moody 
took  charge  of  the  meeting  and  announced  his  text  as  found  in 
14th  chapter  of  Luke: 

"I  am  going  to  talk  about  the  parable  of  the  marriage  sup- 
per, and  the  people  who  were  asked  to  it,"  he  began. 

Mr.  Moody  read  the  parable,  how  that  three  men  had  been 
asked  to  attend  a  wedding  supper  given  by  the  king,  and  in- 
stead of  accepting  it  at  once  and  feeling  glad  for  the  honor  the 


326  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

king  bestowed  upon  them,  excused  themselves,  one  on  the 
ground  that  he  had  bought  some  land,  and  must  tend  it,  an- 
other that  he  had  bought  a  yoke  of  oxen  and  must  try  them, 
and  the  other  that  he  had  married  a  wife  and  could  not  come. 
Then  he  continued: 

"Those  people  were  invited  to  attend  a  feast,  not  an  execu- 
tion, not  a  hospital,  nor  a  surgical  operation,  but  a  feast,  a 
royal  feast.  We  common  people,  where  there  is  no  royalty, 
seldom  get  an  invitation  to  attend  a  royal  feast.  But  if  we 
should,  do  you  think  we  would  refuse  it  as  those  men  did? 
No,  indeed. 

"Those  three  men  began  to  make  excuses.  They  didn't 
have  any  decent  excuse,  so  they  made  up  one.  They  have  been 
doing  that  ever  since  Adam.  Adam  made  the  flimsiest  excuse 
ever  made,  when  he  blamed  his  sin  upon  his  wife.  I  pity  those 
men  who  blame  their  wives  for  their  shortcomings.  One  of 
these  men  had  bought  a  piece  of  ground  and  had  to  see  it.  This 
was  his  excuse.  He  was  doubtless  a  very  polite  man  and  told 
the  servant  to  tell  his  king  that  he  knew  of  no  man  whose  sup- 
per he  would  be  more  pleased  to  attend  than  his,  but  'business 
before  pleasure,  every  time,  you  know,  and  I  must  see  to  this 
piece  of  ground.  I'd  like  to  come  but  really,  I  don't  see  how 
I  can  do  it.  I  pray  thee  have  me  excused.'  The  second  man 
had  bought  a  yoke  of  oxen  and  had  to  prove  them.  Now,  do 
you  think  that  man  went  out  that  night  to  see  those  oxen? 
Why  didn't  he  try  them  before  he  bought  them?  Do  you 
think  he  took  them  out  of  the  stall  and  worked  them  after 
dark?  Not  he.  What  he  wanted  to  do  was  make  an  excuse, 
and  the  thought  of  those  oxen  popped  into  his  head,  so  he 
gave  that.  The  thiVd  man  made  the  most  absurd  excuse  of 
any  of  them.  He  had  married  a  wife  and  couldn't  come. 
Didn't  he  know  that  the  young  bride  would  be  only  too  glad 
to  go  to  the  wedding  feast?  Didn't  he  know  that  it  would  be 
just  the  place  where  young  couples  go  and  see  how  the  oth- 
ers do  it?     Yes,  in  his  sober  moments  he  knew  this,  but  he  was 


MR.  MOODY'S  LAST  CAMPAIGN.  327 

all  confused,  and  wanting  an  excuse,  made  the  most  absurd 
one  he  could. 

"Now,  the  excuses  these  men  made  seem  foolish  and  they 
are,  but  I  challenge  any  one  in  this  great  crowd  to  make  a 
better  one  than  those  made  by  those  three  men.  Let  me  tell 
you  some  of  the  excuses  you  will  make  to  your  conscience  to- 
night for  not  accepting  Christianity.  I  hear  excuses  arc  the 
devil's  cradles  in  which  he  rocks  men's  souls  to  sleep.  Let 
me  tell  you  some  made  here  in  Kansas  City,  Mo.,  not  in  Kan- 
sas City,  Kas.     Yes,  right  in  this  hall  to-night. 

"The  first  excuse  is  the  old  Book.  One  fellow  says  this 
book  contradicts  itself.  It  isn't  true.  I  challenge  any  man 
to  show  me  a  single  promise  God  has  made  to  His  people  He 
has  not  kept.  The  people  who  know  the  Bible  are  not  the 
people  who  revile  it,  but  those  who  never  read  it,  who  know 
nothing  about  it,  are  its  denunciators.  One  man  who  claimed 
to  know  it,  and  that  he  had  read  it  through,  I  found  once,  but 
I  didn't  believe  he  had  ever  read  it  through.  He  could  quote 
but  one  passage  in  it,  and  that  was  the  shortest  verse  in  the 
whole  Bible — 'Jesus  wept.'  People  are  ready  to  give  their 
opinion  on  a  new  book  only  after  they  have  read  it  two  or 
three  times,  but  they  give  their  opinion  about  the  Bible  before 
they  have  read  it — on  hearsay  only. 

"Another  excuse  is,  '  I  am  foreordained  to  be  saved.  If  I 
am  I  shall  be  saved,  no  matter  what  I  do,  so  I  don't  have  to 
stand  up  here  and  profess  before  all  these  people.  If  God 
w^ants  me  saved  He  will  save  me.'  Now,  you  try  that  in  tem- 
poral afifairs.  Just  you  sit  in  your  seats  and  if  God  wants  you 
to  go  home  to  your  family  He  will  get  you  there,  even  if  He 
has  to  carry  you  through  the  window  head  first  and  put  you 
to  bed.  If  He  wants  you  to  succeed  in  business  He  will  see 
that  you  do  so.  You  needn't  move  a  finger.  That's  fine  phil- 
osophy, isn't  it? 

AFRAID  OF  HYPOCRITES. 

"Then  there  are  men  who  cry  'hypocrites!  hypocrites!'  to 


328  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

those  who  are  in  the  church.  But  there's  one  hypocrite  in  the 
church  to  forty  in  the  world.  Why  don't  you  go  out  of  busi- 
ness if  you  arc  afraid  of  hypocrites?  Are  you  a  grocer?  Don't 
some  grocers  put  pounded  marble  in  their  sugar?  Are  you 
a  doctor?  Are  there  no  quacks  among  the  doctors?  Are 
you  a  lawyer?  Are  there  no  tricky  lawyers?  I'm  sick  and 
tired  of  men  who  make  up  excuses  out  of  the  failings  of  oth- 
ers. If  you  hear  a  man  who  always  howls  'hypocrites,'  you 
may  be  sure  he  isn't  far  from  one  himself. 

"But  people  say,  'Isn't  it  hard  to  be  a  Christian?'  I  say  'no, 
it's  easy.'  God  is  not  a  hard  master.  To  say  he  is,  is  a  lie, 
and  I  would  like  to  drive  that  he  back  to  hell  where  it  came 
from.  It  is  Satan  who  is  the  hard  master.  Did  you  ever  see 
the  drunkard  try  to  get  by  a  saloon?  How  he  struggles,  how 
he  tries  to  pass  it  by!  But  he  cannot  for  an  unseen  power 
drags  him  in.     Who  is  the  harder  master,  Christ  or  Satan? 

"I've  worn  God's  yoke  for  over  forty  years  and  I  have  al- 
ways found  it  easy.  There  is  nothing  sweeter  than  to  obey 
the  will  of  God.  He  is  not  a  severe  taskmaster.  You  may 
trust  God.  I  can  believe  in  God  rather  than  in  D.  L.  Moody. 
My  heart  has  deceived  me  a  thousand  times,  but  God  has 
never  deceived  me  once. 

"But  the  main  excuse  for  not  becoming  a  Christian  is  sin, 
and  it's  generally  one  kind  of  sin.  Accursed  sin  holds  you 
back  and  controls  you  and  makes  you  fear.  Oh,  put  ofif  that 
sin  and  come  to  God!  He  is  waiting  for  you.  If  you  have 
a  good  impulse,  act  on  it.  Don't  be  afraid.  I  say  that  most 
of  the  good  done  in  the  world  is  done  by  men  who  act  on  im- 
pulses. I  am  sixty-two  and  I  have  acted  on  impulses  all  my 
life.  I  never  made  a  mistake  by  acting  on  an  impulse  that  I 
felt  to  be  good. 

"The  normal  growth  of  the  Christian  is  toward  more  kind- 
ness and  a  more  beautiful  nature.  Have  you  ever  noticed 
how  many  old  people  are  cross  and  crabbed  these  days?  That 
is  because  they  have  not  been  good  Christians.     I  am  not 


MR.  MOODY'S  LAST  CAMPAIGN.  329 

old.  I  am  only  sixty-two.  I  am  an  infant  to  the  ages  that 
will  roll  over  me  when  I  am  gone.  Those  who  live  in  Christ 
will  live  forever.     The  glory  is  not  past,  but  to  come." 

Mr.  Aloody  returned  at  once  to  his  hotel  at  close  of  the  ser- 
mon little  dreaming  that  his  long  day's  work  was  done,  for 
him  a  little  rest,  and  then  the  coming  glory.  "Those  who 
live  in  Christ  will  live  forever." 

Friday,  November  17th,  the  message  was  flashed  over  the 
wires,  "Mr.  Moody  was  stricken  with  heart  disease.  He  may 
preach  no  more."  When  he  found  that  he  must  give  up  his 
afternoon  service,  he  said,  "I  regret  it  very  much.  It's  the 
first  time  I  ever  did  such  a  thing."  Yet  even  then  he  hoped 
he  might  be  able  to  address  the  night  meeting.  During  the 
afternoon  his  condition  became  so  alarming  that  he  gave  way 
to  the  advice  of  his  physician  and  asked  that  he  might  be  hur- 
ried home  on  a  special  car.  A  httle  later  and  he  was  on  his 
way  home,  borne  up  as  on  angels'  hands  by  the  prayers  ol 
thousands  of  sympathetic  hearts  and  by  the  Almighty's  arms 
of  divine  love. 

After  midnight  he  began  to  rally  somewhat  and  before  noon 
it  was  telegraphed  over  the  country  that  he  was  considered  to 
be  out  of  immediate  danger.  And  so,  graciously,  did  the 
Lord  deal  with  His  faithful  servant  and  grant  him  the  great 
desire  of  his  heart  that  his  Hfe  might  be  spared  to  reach  North- 
field. 


The  Funeral  at  Northfield. 

ASSING  clown  Chestnut  street  on  Friday  afternoon 
December  22ct,  I  saw  a  crowd  gathered  in  front 
of  a  newspaper  office,  and  on  pressing  my  way 
nearer  I  read:  "Dwight  L.  Moody,  the  famous 
evangelist,  died  at  noon  to-day.  He  broke  down  at 
a  revival  service  several  weeks  ago,  and  never  rallied." 
Though  anticipating  this  result  of  his  illness,  yet  this  bulle- 
tin was  a  shock  to  me,  as  to  many  thousands  more  all  over  the 
land.  The  bulletins  from  Northfield,  while  informing  the 
public  of  Mr.  Moody's  serious  illness,  had  intimated  some 
slight  improvement;  indeed  the  few  days  previous  had  shown 
such  a  steady  gain,  that  the  members  of  Mr.  Moody's  family, 
and  inner  circle  of  friends,  did  not  anticipate  that  this  illness 
would  be  immediately  fatal.  But  on  Thursday  there  was  a 
change  for  the  worse.  Symptoms  of  increasing  nervousness 
appeared,  accompanied  by  a  weakness  that  was  alarming.  This 
continued  during  the  night,  and  at  eight  o'clock  Air.  Moody 
called  his  wife  and  children  about  him  telling  them  that  the 
end  was  not  far  ofif.  The  family  remained  close  by  the  bed- 
side all  the  forenoon  that  they  might  not  miss  one  word,  one 
single  glance  of  love,  one  word  of  precious  testimony.  In 
his  weakness  he  was  almost  free  from  pain,  as  often  happens 
in  heart  disease  as  the  beatings  lose  their  force,  and  occa- 
sionally he  talked  with  apparent  ease.     Among 

THE  LAST  WORDS 

he  uttered  were  these,  worthy  of  being  remembered,  so 
strikingly  characteristic  were  they  of  the  man:  "I  have  always 
l)een  an  ambitious  man,  not  to  lay  up  wealth,  but  t(^  find  work 
to  do."  Then  speaking  of  the  work  he  was  leaving  behind 
him  he  said:  "T  should  like  to  make  a  will  at  this  time.  I  have 
not  a  penny  to  leave  you,  but  I  should  like  Will  to  take  Mount 


FUNERAL  AT  NORTHFIELD.  331 

Hermon;  Percy,  you  and  Emma  the  Chicago  Bible  Institute, 
and  Paul,  I  give  you  the  Seminary." 

During  one  of  the  intervals  of  weakness  he  seemed  to  be 
asleep  for  awhile,  but  when  they  roused  him,  saying,  "Father, 
you  have  been  asleep,"  he  replied,  "No!  Fve  not  been  asleep; 
I  have  been  within  the  gates.  I  have  seen  Irene  and  the  chil- 
dren (mentioning  the  names  of  his  other  grandchildren). 
This  is  God's  call.  It  is  my  coronation  day."  Again  he  said, 
"If  this  is  death,  it  is  not  to  be  dreaded;  it  is  beautiful;  it  is 
glorious."  Then  looking  lovingly,  calmly  upon  them,  he 
said:  "It  is  easy  to  go  away,  but  for  you,  but  for  you,  seeing 
there  is  no  dark  valley."  That  vision  was  inexpressibly  com- 
forting to  the  family,  and  sweet  to  him. 

A  little  later  came  the  triumphant  words,  never  to  be  for- 
gotten: "Earth  is  receding.  Heaven  is  opening,  God  is  calling 
me."  A  slight  change  indicated  that  the  end  was  near,  and  at 
exactly  noon  the  great  preacher  passed  within  the  veil  that 
had  grown  so  thin,  and  passed  on  to  glory  and  to  God. 

During  the  last  twenty-five  years  of  his  life,  Mr.  Moody  had 
learned  to  lean  with  his  entire  weight  upon  the  divine  prom- 
ises, and  they  had  never  failed  him.  So,  now,  in  these  last 
hours,  his  victory  through  faith  had  been  so  manifestly  glor- 
ious, that  wife,  and  family,  and  friends,  though  natural  grief 
must  have  been  strong  upon  them,  were  most  w^onderfuUy  sus- 
tained as  by  the  encircling  power  of  the  everlasting  arms. 
Things  eternal  were  so  near,  so  real,  so  precious;  they  were 
so  confident  that  he  had  entered  the  circle  of  the  loved  and 
blessed  ones,  that  it  was,  indeed,  for  him,  a  coronation  day, 
that  they,  too,  were  able  to  rejoice  "with  joy  unspeakable 
and  full  of  glory."  The  inspiration  of  that  triumphant  de- 
parture was  so  strong  upon  them  that  some  were  even  amazed 
at  the  entire  absence  of  that  spirit  of  depression  which  so  of- 
ten rests  like  a  dead  weight  upon  the  hearts  of  a  stricken 
household. 

The  Sabbath  passed  slowly  in  a  downpour  of  rain,  yet  some 


332  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

of  the  household  were  in  their  usual  places  at  the  forenoon  ser- 
vices in  the  Congregational  church.  Tuesday  morning  came — 

THE  DAY  OF  THE  FUNERAL. 

There  was  no  air  of  gloom  about  the  house.  The  curtains 
were  raised  as  usual,  the  clear  winter  sunlight  lay  bright  and 
warm  upon  the  floors  within.  Mr,  Moody,  clad  in  his  usual 
garb,  lay  like  one  asleep,  only  he  was  so  cold  and  still.  It  had 
been  arranged  that  the  body  should  be  borne  to  the  church 
early  in  the  day,  there  to  lie  in  state  until  the  services  should 
begin  at  2.30  in  the  afternoon.  There  was  but  a  brief  service 
at  the  house  for  the  family,  and  a  few  intimate  friends,  at  nine 
A.  M.,  consisting  of  the  reading  of  a  few  passages  of  scrip- 
ture by  Dr.  Scofield,  pastor  of  the  church,  and  prayer  by  Dr. 
Torrey,  of  Chicago.  Then  came  the  trying  ordeal  when  Mrs. 
Moody  and  family  and  relatives  were  left  alone  with  their 
dead.  We  are  sure,  however,  that  through  their  tears,  look- 
ing up  to  heaven  they  saw  the  "vision  splendid" — the  rainbow 
round  about  the  throne  of  God. 

After  the  retirement  of  the  family,  the  body  was  placed  in 
the  casket,  then  carried  out  ai;d  placed  upon  the  bier,  and 
having  been  covered  with  white  roses,  it  was  borne  by  relays 
of  Mount  Hermon  students  to  the  Congregational  Church, 

It  was  not  until  10.30  A.  M.  that  this  brief  procession  was 
able  to  leave  the  house,  with  Rev.  Dr.  Scofield  and  Dr.  Torrey 
walking  in  front  of  the  bier  and  its  escorts  of  students,  the 
honorary  pall  bearers,  Geo.  C.  Stebbins  and  Ira  D.  Sankey,  R. 
C.  Morse  and  D.  W.  McWilliams,  Rev.  Dr.  Geo.  C.  Need- 
ham  and  Dr.  W.  J.  Erdman  following,  and  after  them  a  large 
group  of  friends. 

Having  arrived  at  the  church  the  casket  was  placed  in  front 
of  the  pulpit,  and  the  lid  removed.  The  guard  of  honor  took 
up  their  positions — professors  from  Northfield  schools  stand- 
ing at  the  head  and  the  foot  of  the  casket — and  then  the  lov- 
ing, tearful  throngs  began  to  pass  by,  to  look  for  the  last  time 


FUNERAL  AT  NORTHFIELD.  333 

on  the  face  of  one  who  had  brought  to  hundreds  of  them  the 
greatest  spiritual  force  that  had  ever  entered  into  their  Hves. 

When  we  remember  the  transformation  of  that  httle,  dull, 
New  England  village  to  the  Northfield  of  to-day,  known 
throughout  Christendom  as  the  home  of  Mr.  Aloody,  the  seat 
of  great  educational  institutions,  as  the  center  of  the  most  re- 
markable Christian  conferences  to  be  found  in  the  wide  world, 
we  need  not  be  surprised  at  the  honor  paid  to  his  memory. 
From  near  and  from  far,  from  all  the  region  round  about,  they 
gathered  by  the  hundreds — from  the  hamlets  and  scattered 
villages,  from  all  the  adjacent  towns  and  from  distant  cities — 
until  it  was  estimated  that  at  least  three  thousand  people  were 
present  at  this  most  memorable  funeral  service  which  North- 
field  may  ever  witness. 

In  the  church,  as  at  the  house,  no  funeral  pall  was  allowed 
to  gather  about  the  soul.  Everything  spoke  of  life  and  hope. 
Evergreens  decorated  the  galleries  as  for  Christmas  rejoic- 
ings. A  pillow  of  green,  on  which  a  crown  of  white  roses  had 
been  interwoven,  was  placed  at  the  head  of  the  casket.  At 
the  foot  was  a  floral  design  of  an  open  Bible,  having  on  one 
page  the  word  "Victory,"  on  the  other  the  reference  II  Tim. 
4:7-8,  which  is,  "I  have  fought  a  good  fight,  I  have  finished  my 
course,  I  have  kept  the  faith,"  etc.  Sheaves  of  wheat  sug- 
gested the  harvest  of  a  rich  and  ripened  life,  sprays  of  roses, 
the  fragrance  of  his  memory,  and  the  laurel  and  the  palm 
spoke  again  of  victory  and  the  crown. 

The  center  of  the  church  had  been  reserved  for  the  family 
and  immediate  friends;  on  either  side  were  massed  the  hun- 
dreds of  students  from  Mount  Hermon  and  Northfield,  while 
the  galleries  were  crowded  to  the  stairs  with  villagers  and  vis- 
itors. On  the  platform  were  a  number  of  distinguished  min- 
isters and  laymen,  who  had  gathered  to  pay  respect  to  his 
memory  or  bring  a  tribute  of  praise  to  his  honor.  Among 
them  were  Rev.  Dr.  H.  G.  Weston,  of  Crozier  Theological 
Seminary;  Rev.  Dr.  Geo.  C.  Needham  and  Hon.  John  Wana- 


334  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

maker,  of  Philadelphia;  Revs.  Drs.  A.  T.  Pierson  and  A.  C. 
Dixon,  of  Brooklyn;  Dr.  J.  Wilbur  Chapman,  of  New  York; 
Dr.  H.  M.  Wharton,  of  Baltimore;  Rev.  E.  Payson  Hammond 
and  Bishop  Mallalieu,  of  the  Methodist  Church. 
Soon  after  the  arrival  of  the  family, 

THE  SERVICES  AT  THE  CHURCH 

began,  with  a  hymn  by  the  congregation.  Scripture  lesson, 
read  by  Dr.  Pierson,  and  a  prayer  followed,  and  then  all 
joined  in  singing  "Emanuel's  Land."  Rev.  Dr.  Scofield,  Mr. 
Moody's  home  pastor,  then  delivered  a  very  eloquent  and  in- 
spiring eulogy,  speaking  from  H  Cor.  5:1  and  6.  He  began 
by  saying:  "We  know.  We  are  always  confident.  This  is 
the  Christian's  attitude  toward  the  mystery  of  death — we  are 
confident  and  willing  to  be  absent  from  the  body  and  present 
with  the  Lord.  For  we  know  that  if  our  earthly  house  of  this 
tabernacle  were  dissolved,  we  have  a  building  of  God,  an 
house  not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens.'  We 
know;  we  are  always  confident.  In  this  triumphant  assurance 
Dwight  L.  Moody  lived  and  at  high  noon,  last  Friday,  he  died. 
We  are  not  met,  dear  friends,  to  mourn  a  defeat,  but  to  cele- 
brate a  triumph.  'He  walked  with  God,  and  he  was  not,  for 
God  took  him.'  " 

This  reference  to  Enoch  recalls  to  us  some  of  Mr.  Moody's 
most  striking  works  regarding  him.  "By  faith  he  could  see, 
in  that  world  of  light.  Him  who  is  invisible.  He  was  dead  to 
the  world.  He  had  the  world  under  his  feet.  He  could  sec 
that  everything  was  trifling  here,  and  would  soon  pass  away; 
but  that  God's  kingdom  was  an  everlasting  kingdom,  and  that 
He  would  reign  forever,  and  he  walked  with  God.  One  day  the 
cord  that  bound  him  to  earth  and  time  snapped  asunder.  God 
said  to  him,  'Come  up  higher,'  and  up  he  went  to  walk  in 
glory.  God  liked  his  company,  so  well  that  He  called  His 
servant  home.  Dr.  Andrew  Bonar  has  said  that  'Enoch  took 
a  long  walk  with  God  one  day,  and  has  not  got  back  yet.' 


FUNERAL  AT   NORTHFIELD.  335 

"There  in  the  west,  in  the  presence  of  great  audiences  of 
twelve  thousand  of  his  fellow  men,  God  spoke  to  Mr.  Moody 
to  lay  it  all  down  and  come  home.  He  would  have  planned  it 
so.  No  one  will  ever  question  that  we  are  to-day  laying  in 
the  kindly  bosom  of  the  earth  the  mortal  body  of  a  great  man. 
Whether  we  measure  greatness  by  qualities  of  character,  by 
qualities  of  intellect,  or  by  things  done,  Dwight  L.  Moody 
must  be  accounted  great.  The  basis  of  Mr.  Moody's  charac- 
ter was  sincerity,  genuineness.  He  had  an  inveterate  aver- 
sion to  all  forms  of  sham,  unreality  and  pretense.  Most  of 
all  did  he  detest  religious  pretense  or  cant. 

Mr.  Moody  also  cherished  a  great  love  of  righteousness. 
His  first  questioning  concerning  any  proposition  was,  "Is  it 
right?"  But  those  two  qualities  which  must  necessarily  lie  at 
the  bottom  of  all  noble  character  were  in  him  sufifused  and 
transfigured  by  divine  grace.  The  secret  of  Mr.  Moody's 
power  lay  in  the  following:  First,  in  a  definite  experience  of 
Christ's  saving  grace.  He  had  passed  out  of  death  into  life 
and  he  knew  it.  He  knew  Him  whom  he  believed.  His  life 
had  in  it  the  ring  of  deepest  conviction.  Secondly,  Mr.  Moody 
beHeved  in  the  divine  authority  of  the  scriptures.  The  Bible 
was  to  him  the  voice  of  God,  and  he  made  it  resound  as  such 
in  the  consciences  of  men.  Thirdly,  he  was  baptized  with  the 
Holy  Ghost,  and  he  knew  that  he  was.  It  was  to  him  as  defi- 
nite an  experience  as  his  conversion.  Fourthly,  he  was  a  man 
of  prayer.  He  believed  in  a  living  and  unfettered  God. 
"He  did  not  believe  that  God  had  bound  Himself  under  bond- 
age to  His  own  laws,  he  believed  in  a  God  that  could  answer 
prayer."  But,  finally,  Mr.  Moody  believed  in  work,  in  cease- 
less effort,  in  wise  provision,  in  organization  and  publicity.  I 
like  to  think  of  Dwight  L.  Aloody  in  heaven.  Farewell,  for  a 
little  time,  great  heart.  May  a  double  portion  of  the  Spirit 
be  vouchsafed  to  us  who  remain. 

The  eloquent  Bishop  Mallalieu  delivered 


336  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

A  GLOWING  TRIBUTE 
to  Mr.  Moody  whom  he  characterized  as  one  of  the  most  ut- 
terly unselfish  and  devoted  disciple  that  ever  followed  the 
Master.  He  said  that  he  had  first  met  and  became  acquainted 
with  Mr.  Moody  in  London,  in  the  summer  of  1875.  "From 
that  day  when  he  moved  the  masses  of  the  world's  metropolis, 
to  the  hour  \vhen  he  answered  the  call  of  God  to  come  up 
higher,  I  have  known  him,  esteemed  him  and  loved  him. 
Surely,  we  may  now  say,  that  in  his  death  one  of  the  truest, 
bravest,  purest  and  most  influential  men  of  this  century  has 
passed  to  his  rest  and  his  reward.  With  feelings  of  unspeak- 
able loss  and  desolation  we  gather  about  the  casket  that  con- 
tains all  that  was  mortal  of  Dwight  L.  Moody. 

"Yet  what  a  mighty  uplift  and  inspiration  must  come  to  each 
one  of  us  as  we  contemplate  his  character  and  achievements. 
In  bone  and  brawn  and  brain  he  was  a  typical  New  Englander. 
He  was  descended  from  the  choicest  New  England  stock,  was 
born  of  a  New  England  mother,  and  from  his  earliest  life  he 
breathed  the  free  air  of  his  native  hills,  and  was  carefully 
trained  in  the  knowlegde  of  God.  It  was  to  be  expected  of 
such  a  rugged  nature  that,  when  converted,  and  consecrated 
thoroughly,  completely  and  irrevocably  to  the  service  of  God 
and  humanity,  he  would  become  a  Christian  of  most  pro- 
nounced characteristics.  The  heart  of  no  disciple  of  the  Mas- 
ter ever  beat  with  more  genuine,  sympathetic  and  utterly  un- 
selfish loyalty  than  did  this  great  heart.  He  held  fast  to  the 
absolute  truth  of  the  Bible,  and  unequivocably  and  intensely 
believed  it  to  be  the  inerrant  word  of  God.  He  preached  the 
gospel,  rather  than  talked  about  the  gospel.  He  used  his 
mother  tongue,  speaking  in  clear,  terse,  ringing,  straightfor- 
ward Saxon.  He  had  the  profoundest  sense  of  brotherhood 
with  all  the  poor,  unfortunate  and  even  outcast  ones  among 
the  people.  He  was  unafTectedly  tender  and  patient  with  the 
weak  and  sinful.  He  hated  evil  as  thoroughly  as  he  loved 
goodness.     He  knew  right  well  how  to  lead  penitent  souls  di- 


Snap-shot  of  Moody. 


FUNERAL  AT  NORTHFIELD.  337 

rectly  to  the  Savior.  He  had  the  rare  and  happy  art  of  arous- 
ing Christian  people  to  the  performance  of  their  duties.  He 
had  in  his  own  soul  a  conscious,  joyous  experience  of  personal 
salvation.  And  hence  the  people  flocked  to  his  services  by 
the  thousands,  they  heard  him  gladly,  they  believed  and  were 
converted.  Because  of  these  blessed  results  Mr.  Moody  came 
to  be  prized  and  honored  by  all  denominations,  so  that  to- 
day all  Protestantism  recognizes  the  fact  that  he  was  God's 
servant,  an  ambassador  for  Christ,  a  chosen  vessel  to  bear  the 
name  of  Jesus  to  the  nations. 

"We  shall  not  again  behold  his  manly  form  animated  with 
life;  hear  his  thrilling  voice,  or  be  moved  by  his  consecrated 
personality;  but  if  we  are  true  and  faithful  to  our  Lord  we 
shall  see  him  in  glory,  for  already  he  walks  the  streets  of  the 
heavenly  city,  he  mingles  in  the  song  of  the  innumerable  com- 
pany of  white  robed  saints,  sees  the  King  in  His  beauty  and 
awaits  our  coming.  May  God  grant  that  in  due  time  we  may 
meet  him  over  yonder." 

MR.  MOODY'S  MASTERY  OF  MEN. 

President  Weston  spoke  most  eloquently  of  Mr.  Moody's 
strong  influence  over  men  and  the  power  by  which  he  drew 
them  fast  to  his  side.  Of  his  splendid  address  we  can  give 
but  a  part: 

"I  count  as  one  of  the  greatest  blessings  of  my  life  my  ac- 
quaintance with  Mr.  Moody,  the  influence  he  had  on  me,  and 
the  privilege  of  studying  God's  methods  in  his  life  and  work. 
We  instinctively  attribute  the  success  of  every  man  who  is 
eminent  in  influencing  others,  to  some  special,  natural  endow- 
ment, to  education  and  training,  or  to  a  magnetic  power.  Mr. 
Moody  had  none  of  these,  yet  no  man  has  surpassed  him  in 
his  power  of  attraction  and  influence,  both  over  masses  of 
men  and  over  individuals  of  strong  character,  and  of  great 
resources,  whom  he  fastened  to  himself  with  hooks  of  steel, 
making  them  not  only  his  lifelong  friends  but  his  constant 
22 


338  DWIGIIT  L.  MOODY. 

partners  in  all  his  good  works.  We  can  not  explain  this  mar- 
velous power  by  his  possession  of  any  one  peculiar  natural 
gift.  What  had  he?  He  had  life.  I  do  not  mean  the  man- 
ner of  living,  but  what  the  Bible  means  by  this  word — what 
Christ  means  by  it  when  He  says,  'I  am  come  that  they  might 
have  life,  might  have  it  more  abundantly.'  God  gave  him  life, 
made  him  a  partaker  of  the  divine  nature,  and  from  the 
moment  he  received  it  the  development,  growth  and  mani- 
festation of  that  life  became  the  whole  object  of  his  existence. 
To  it  he  devoted  every  power  of  his  being,  and  that  devotion 
kindled  into  interest  and  activity  every  latent  energy  of  his 
nature,  and  made  him  the  complete,  full-orbed  man  that  he 
was,  and  gave  him  his  wonderful  mastery  over  man. 

"Then  he  nourished  and  strengthened  that  life  by  devotion 
to  God's  Word.  He  realized  to  the  full  Christ's  words,  'Man 
shall  not  live  by  bread  alone,  but  by  every  word  that  proceetl- 
eth  out  of  the  mouth  of  C^od.'  This  word  he  hid  in  his  heart, 
ready  for  use  on  every  occasion  and  in  every  emergency.  His 
mind  and  heart  were  given  to  the  study  of  the  word  of  God, 
and  from  it  he  drew  forth  treasures  both  new  and  old. 

"But  his  life,  like  that  of  his  Master's,  was  given  for  others. 
He  did  not  search  the  Bible  to  enrich  his  own  heart  merely, 
but  that  he  might  learn  how  to  save  men.  He  counted  all  but 
loss  unless  this  were  attained,  unless  he  might  w'in  men  to 
Christ.  It  was  this  growing  conformity  to  the  likeness  of 
Christ,  the  transparent  sincerity  of  his  own  life,  which  gave 
him  power  with  men.  They  listened  to  him,  they  believed 
him;  they  yielded  themselves  to  the  power  of  the  truth  as  he 
proclaimed  the  gospel  of  salvation. 

"And  so, because  Mr.  Moody  could  in  his  measure  use  those 
great  words  of  Christ,  'I  am  come  that  ye  might  have  Hfe,'  be- 
cause those  words  expressed  his  whole  being,  I  loved  and 
honored  him,  and  because  of  what  he  was,  and,  therefore,  of 
what  he  did.  I  say  to-day,  I  had  rather  be  Mr.  TNIoody  dead, 
lying  there  in  his  cofifin,  than  any  living  man  on  earth." 


FUNERAL  AT  NORTHFIELD.  339 

VICTORY  THROUGH  GRACE. 

Dr.  Torrey  spoke  of  the  victory  through  grace  which  had 
wrought  so  wonderfully  in  Mr.  Moody's  life  and  was  at  that 
moment  the  inspiration  of  their  own.  In  his  address  were 
these  words  to  the  family: 

"It  is  oftentimes  the  first  duty  of  a  pastor  to  speak  words  of 
comfort  to  those  whose  hearts  are  aching  with  loneliness,  and 
breaking  underneath  the  burden  of  their  sorrow,  but  this  is 
utterly  unnecessary  to-day.  The  God  of  all  comfort  hath  al- 
ready abundantly  comforted  them  with  a  comfort  wherewith 
in  coming  days  they  will  be  able  to  comfort  others.  I  have 
spent  hours  within  the  last  few  days  with  those  who  are  near- 
est to  our  departed  friend,  and  the  words  that  I  have  heard 
from  them  have  been  words  of  rest  in  God  and  triumph.  As 
one  of  them  has  said:  'God  must  be  answering  the  prayers 
that  are  going  up  for  us  all  over  the  world,  we  are  being  so 
wonderfully  sustained.'  Another  has  said:  'His  last  four  glo- 
rious hours  on  earth  have  taken  all  the  sting  out  of  death.' 
And  still  another,  'Be  sure  that  every  word  to-day  is  a  word  of 
triumph.'  " 

Dr.  Torrey  first  spoke  on  the  words  of  Paul,  I  Cor.  XV:io: 
"By  the  grace  of  God  I  am  what  I  am,"  saying  that  God  had 
wonderfully  magnified  His  grace  and  love  in  D.  L.  Moody. 

"God  was  magnified  in  his  birth.  That  child,  born  sixty- 
two  years  ago,  that  wonderful  soul,  was  God's  gift  to  the 
world.  How  much  it  meant,  how  much  the  world  has  been 
blessed  by  it  we  shall  never  know  this  side  the  coming  of  our 
Lord.  In  his  conversion,  forty-three  years  ago,  the  grace  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  was  manifested.  By  the  power  of  the  word 
and  the  regenerating  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  Mr.  IMoody 
became  a  mighty  man  of  God.  It  was  all  of  God's  grace;  and 
that  grace  and  God's  love  were  magnified  in  the  development 
of  that  character,  and  the  direction  of  that  life.  That  charac- 
ter and  life  were  God's  gift  to  a  world  that  sorely  needed  men 
like  him.     God's  grace  and  love  were  magnified  again  in  his 


340  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

service.  The  great  secret  of  his  success  was  supernatural 
power,  given  in  answer  to  prayer." 

The  second  thought  was  based  on  Joshua  i  :2.  "The  death 
of  Mr.  Moody  is  a  call  to  go  forward.  It  is  a  call  to  his  chil- 
dren, his  associates,  to  ministers  of  the  gospel,  to  the  whole 
church,  to  go  forward.  'Our  leader  has  fallen,  let  us  give  up 
the  work'  some  would  say.  Not  for  a  moment.  Listen  to 
what  God  said  to  Joshua:  'Moses,  my  servant,  is  dead.  Now, 
therefore,  arise,  go  over  this  Jordan,  thou  and  all  this  people, 
unto  the  land  which  I  do  give  them.'  'Move  forward.  As  I 
was  with  D.  L.  Moody  so  I  will  be  with  you.  I  will  not  fail 
thee  nor  forsake  thee.'  " 

It  certainly  is  very  significant  of  the  unity  of  spirit,  purpose 
and  faith  that  inspires  all  who  were  associated  with  Mr. 
Moody  in  his  great  educational  work  that  there  has  not  been 
a  discordant  or  minor  key  struck  since  his  death.  They  are 
looking  and  planning  for  greater  things  to  be  wrought  out  at 
Northfield,  Mount  Hermon  and  at  the  Bible  Institute,  than 
have  ever  yet  been  achieved.  These  great  institutions  are 
just  coming  into  the  maturity  of  their  powers. 

Dr.  Chapman  spoke  very  briefly  of  Mr.  Moody's  finding  him 
in  college  when  he  had  no  definite  object  in  Christ,  and  point- 
ing him  to  the  hope  in  God.  "He  saw  my  heart  and  I  saw  his 
Savior."  In  later  years  when  preaching  without  any  great 
results,  Mr.  Moody  came  to  him  and  laid  one  hand  on  his 
shoulder  and  the  other  on  the  open  Bible,  and  said,  "Young 
man,  you  had  better  get  more  of  this  into  your  life."  "And 
so,  when  I  became  an  evangelist  myself,  in  perplexity  I  would 
still  sit  at  his  feet,  and  every  perplexity  would  vanish  just  as 
mist  before  the  rising  sun.  He  was  the  dearest  friend  I  have 
had.  If  my  own  father  were  lying  in  the  coffin  I  could  not  feel 
more  the  sense  of  loss." 

Dr.  H.  M.  Wharton  deUvered  a  brief  address,  as  did  also 
Hon.  John  Wanamaker,  but  as  Mr.  Wanamaker's  address  at 
the  memorial  services  held  in  Philadelphia  will  be  given  in  full 


FUNERAL  AT  NORTHFIELD.  341 

we  pass  to  the  closing  remarks  of  Dr.  A.  T.  Pierson,  who  paid 
a  special  tribute  to  Mr.  Moody's  memory. 

The  keynote  to  that  remarkable  life,  he  thought  to  be  the 
hour  when  in  Chicago  Mr.  Moody  laid  aside  all  business  am- 
bitions and  determined  to  Hve  for  God.  It  was  that  consecra- 
tion of  life  which  caused  everything  which  he  undertook  in  the 
cause  of  Christ  to  be  crowned  with  success.  In  preaching  the 
gospel  he  must  have  directly  reached  many  millions.  Taking 
into  consideration  his  evangelistic  labors  for  thirty  years,  all 
the  people  that  his  printed  sermons,  and  addresses  and  books 
have  reached  through  the  various  translations  which  have 
been  made,  it  may  be  that  the  multitudes  whose  lives  he 
has  touched  would  number  one  hundred   millions. 

As  Mr.  Moody's  departure  caused  a  world-wide  lamenta- 
tion here  on  earth,  so  at  his  entrance  into  heaven  there  must 
have  been  an  unusual  commotion.  "Can  you  think  of  any 
other  man  of  the  last  century  whose  coming  so  many  souls 
would  have  welcomed  at  the  gates  of  heaven?  It  was  a  tri- 
umphal entrance  into  glory." 

MR.  MOODY'S  GREAT  AMBITION. 

In  the  closing  paragraphs  of  a  sermon  on  Heaven,  Mr. 
Moody  once  narrated  the  following  story: 

It  became  a  father's  sad  duty  to  break  to  his  dear  son  who 
had  been  dangerously  ill,  the  fact  that  the  end  was  very  near. 
As  he  did  so  the  young  man  looked  up,  saying,  "Am  I  dying?" 
"Yes,  my  son."  "Will  I  die  to-day?"  "Yes,  my  boy,  you 
can  not  live  until  night." 

"And  the  boy  looked  surprised  and  yet  seemed  glad,  and 
said,  'Well,  father,  I  will  be  with  Jesus  to-night,  won't  I?' 
'Yes,  my  boy,  you  will  soon  be  with  the  Savior' ;  and  the  father 
turned  away  to  conceal  his  tears,  when  the  dear  boy  said, 
'Father,  don't  you  weep  for  me;  when  I  get  to  heaven,  I'll  go 
straight  to  Jesus  and  tell  Him  that  ever  since  I  can  remember 
you  have  tried  to  lead -me  to  Him.'  "     And  then  Mr.  Moody 


342  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

added  with  great  emotion,  "I  would  rather  have  such  testi- 
mony as  this  go  home  to  my  Father  through  my  children  than 
to  have  the  world  rolled  at  my  feet.  I  would  rather  have  them 
come  to  my  grave  and  drop  a  tear  on  it,  and  say,  'When  my 
father  lived  he  was  more  anxious  iov  my  eternal  salvation 
than  he  was  for  my  teiuporal  good,'  than  1  would  to  have  all 
the  power  this  world  can  bestow." 

Thait  hour  had  now  come  at  Northfield,  when  Mr.  Will  R. 
Moody,  the  eldest  son  of  the  great  evangelist,  rose  in  his  pew 
and  with  voice  trembling  with  emotion  gave  this  testimony 
concerning  his  father: 

"As  a  son  I  want  to  say  a  few  words  of  him  as  a  father.  We 
have  heard  from  his  pastor,  his  associates  and  friends,  and  he 
was  just  as  true  as  a  father.  I  don't  think  he  showed  up  in 
any  way  better  than  when,  on  one  or  two  occasions  in  dealing 
with  us  as  children,  with  his  impulsive  nature  he  spoke  rather 
sharply.  We  have  known  him  to  come  to  us  and  say.  'My 
children,  my  son,  my  daughter,  I  spoke  quickly;  I  did  wrong. 
I  want  you  to  forgive  me.'  That  was  D.  L.  Moody  as  a 
father. 

"He  was  not  yearning  to  go;  he  loved  his  work.  Life  was 
very  attractive.  It  seems  as  though  on  that  early  morning, 
as  he  had  one  foot  upon  the  threshold,  it  was  given  him  for  our 
sake  to  give  us  a  word  of  comfort.  He  said.  'This  is  bliss;  it 
is  like  a  trance.  If  this  is  death,  it  is  beautiful.'  And  his  face 
lighted  up  as  he  mentioned  those  whom  he  saw.  T  have  been 
inside  the  gates.     God  is  calling  me.     Do  not  call  me  back.' 

"We  could  not  call  him  back;  we  tr'ied  to  for  a  moment,  but 
we  could  not.  He  had  crossed  the  bar  homeward.  It  was 
putting  out  to  sea.  We  thank  God  for  his  home  life,  for  his 
true  life;  and  we  thank  God  that  he  was  our  father,  and  that  he 
led  each  one  of  his  children  to  know  Jesus  Christ." 

With  the  singing  of  "Blessed  Hope"  by  the  Mount  Hermon 
quartet,  the  services  at  the  church  ended,  the  casket  was 
closed  and  borne  to  Round  Top,  where     Mr.     Moody     had 


FUNERAL  AT  NORTHFIELD.  343 

dearly  loved  to  hold  his  six  o'clock  meetings  on  siminier  eve- 
nings. There,  with  the  singing  of  a  single  verse  of  "Jesus, 
Lover  of  My  Soul,"  just  as  the  winter  sun  was  sinking  behind 
the  western  hills,  the  body  of  Dwight  L.  Moody  was  laid  to 
rest  in  the  sure  hope  of  the  resurrection. 


© 


Memorial  Services  in  Philadelphia. 

N  Thursday  evening,  January  nth,  1900,  a  memor- 
ial service  was  held  in  the  Temple  Baptist  Church, 
Broad  and  Berks  Streets.  In  spite  of  a  heavy 
downpour  of  rain,  two  or  three  thousand  people 
thronged  the  Temple  to  do  honor  to  the  memory 
of  Dwight  L.  Moody.  Rev.  Bishop  C.  D.  Foss,  D.  D.,  LL.D., 
presided  over  the  meeting.  On  the  platform,  among  others, 
were  gathered  Rev.  Drs.  S.  W.  Dana,  Floyd  W.  Tomkins, 
Wayland  Hoyt;  Hon.  John  Wanamaker  and  Mr.  Ira  D.  San- 
key,  whose  addresses  are  given  together  with  that  of  Rev. 
Kerr  Boyce  Tupper,  who  was  unable  to  be  present  to  deliver 
it  in  person.  The  singing  of  the  choir  and  congregation  was 
led  by  Professor  Fischer,  who,  in  1875,  conducted  the  great 
chorus  in  the  "old  depot." 

During  the  evening  Mr.  Sankey,  who  is  still  in  remarkably 
good  voice,  sang  "There'll  be  No  Dark  Valley,"  and  the  gos- 
pel hymn,  "Saved  by  Grace";  but  of  special  interest  w^as  a  new 
hymn  written  in  memory  of  Mr.  Moody,  which  he  rendered 
with  great  tenderness  and  effect.  Of  it  we  may  give  but  a 
single  verse: 

OUT  OF  THE  SHADOW-LAND. 
"God  is  calling  mc." — D.  L.  Moody. 
"Out  of  the  shadow-land,  into  the  sunshine, 

Cloudless,  eternal,  that  fades  not  away; 
Softly  and  tenderly,  Jesus  hath  called  him 

Home,  where  the  ransomed  are  gathering  to-day." 
Chorus: 
"Silently,  peacefully,  angels  have  borne  him, 

Into  the  beautiful  mansions  above; 
There  shall  he  rest  from  earth's  toiling  forever. 
Safe  in  the  arms  of  God's  infinite  love." 


MEMORIAL  SERVICES  IN  PHILADELPHIA.  343 

During  the  exercises,  out  of  numerous  letters  received,  Rev. 
W.  C.  Webb,  D.D.,  secretary  of  the  EvangeHcal  Alhance, 
under  whose  auspices  the  meeting  was  held,  read  testimonials 
from  Rev.  George  White,  Rev.  Dr.  McCook,  Bishop  Whit- 
taken,  Mr.  Lewis  Redner,  Mr.  John  Field,  and  Rev.  Russel  H. 
Conwell,  the  absent  pastor  of  the  Temple. 

The  services  were  opened  by  singing  the  hymn,  "In  the 
Cross  of  Christ  I  Glory,"  and  reading  of  the  scriptures. 
Prayer  was  then  offered  by  Rev.  George  A.  Peltz,  assistant 
pastor  of  the  church. 

"Our  Heavenly  Father,  it  is  always  a  solemn  privilege  when 
we  draw  near  to  Thee,  and  we  feel  to-night  that  it  is  especially 
solemn,  and  that  it  is  a  privilege.  We  feel  solemnized  be- 
cause we  are  impressed  with  the  fact  that  the  workers  that 
seem  the  most  important  here  on  earth  can  be  dispensed  with 
in  a  moment,  and  by  Thy  grace  they  pass  onward  and  they 
pass  off  this  stage  of  action  in  the  midst  of  their  usefulness. 
When  the  breadth  of  their  activity  seems  to  be  growing  day 
by  day,  even  then  Thou  seest  fit  to  lay  them  aside.  None  of 
us  are  important  to  Thee,  and  yet  every  one  of  us  Thou  dost 
honor  by  giving  a  place  in  Thy  kingdom  and  by  giving  us  a 
work  which  we  shall  do. 

'*0  God,  we  remember  with  tender  hearts  to-night  ihe  man 
of  God  that  has  gone  from  among  us;  we  remember  his  min- 
istries in  this  pulpit;  we  remember  his  ministries  through  our 
land,  and  through  the  world  his  influence  has  gone,  and  gone 
for  good. 

"O  God,  when  such  a  worker  may  be  laid  aside,  what  shall 
be  said  for  the  rest  of  us?  We  are  humihated  before  Thee.  How 
little  have  we  done,  how  narrow  has  been  our  influence,  how 
few  we  have  led  to  Christ,  how  little  we  have  illustrated  the 
Master's  spirit,  but  we  would  come  to  Thee,  O  God,  and  while 
Thou  hast  taken  from  among  us  that  dear  brother  whom  we 
loved,  whom  we  so  honored,  at  whose  feet  we  delighted  to  sit, 
we  remember  that  he  is  with  Thee,  and  that  Thou  art  the  great 


346  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

Teacher,  that  Thou  art  the  one  lliat  didst  teach  him,  the  one 
whom  he  did  supremely  honor,  and  Thou  art  with  us,  and  wc 
may  lionor  and  we  may  serve  Thee,  and  blessed  be  Thy  holy 
name,  we  may  have  help  and  we  may  have  Thy  blessin<^,  and 
for  that  we  pray.  Thou  hast  given  gifts  unto  Thy  churches 
and  workers,  and  conspicuously  to  the  brother  that  has  gone. 
O,  take  us,  take  every  believer  in  Jesus  before  Thee  here  to- 
night, take  every  believer  in  Jesus  knowing  of  this  meeting 
and  who  would  have  been  here  had  circumstances  permitted, 
take  every  one  of  those  who  love  Thee  and  endow  them  with 
power  from  on  high,  and  send  them  out  to  labor  for  Thee  in  a 
spirit  that  cannot  be  resisted  and  that  will  win  hearts  to  Christ 
and  bring  glory  to  Thy  blessed  name.  For  that  we  are  gath- 
ered here,  not  to  laud  a  fellow-man,  but  to  praise  Thy  grace 
that  out  of  man  Thou  didst  make  such  a  mighty  power.  Take 
us,  O  God,  make  powers  of  us,  and  make  that  the  result  of  our 
gathering  here  to-night.  This  we  ask  in  Jesus'  name.  Amen." 
The  addresses  followed,  and  then  with  the  hymn,  "God  be 
with  You  Till  We  meet  again,"  with  memories  quickened, 
hearts  aroused,  and  souls  keyed  up  to  more  earnest  and  con- 
secrated endeavor,  the  great  audience  was  dismissed  with  the 
benediction. 


What  Mr.  Moody  Was. 

By  Bishop  Cyrus  D.  Foss,  D.D.,  LL.  D. 

F  there  is  joy  in  heaven  among  angels  over  one  sinner 
which  repenteth,  what  welcome  must  our  good  friend 
have  had  who  preached  the  gospel  no  doubt  to  many 
millions  of  men  and  was  God's  agent  in  leading 
scores  of  thousands  to  the  foot  of  the  cross.  What 
outbursts  of  angelic  saintly  songs  and  what  a  symphony  of 
the  golden  harps  there  must  have  been  in  heaven  when  he 
arrived!  What  was  this  wonderful  man  who  belonged  to  all 
churches  of  every  faith  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic? 

I  wish  to  say  four  things  that  are  in  my  mind  and  heart  to 
say.  To  begin  with,  he  was  a  great  pattern  of  a  man,  and 
when  God  has  a  great  work  to  do  He  prepares  a  special  in- 
strument. When  such  men  are  prepared  they  are  only  made 
to  follow  out  the  lines  He  has  laid  down,  and  they  may  all 
have  faults;  probably  our  brother  and  friend  had  his.  I  do 
not  know  of  them.  But  God  made  him  on  a  large  pattern  and 
gave  him  a  great  nature,  and  I  have  reason  to  believe  that  he 
preached  the  gospel  to  more  men  than  any  other  man  who 
ever  lived.  I  challenge  your  attention  to  that  proposition. 
I  believe  it  is  correct.  He  could  have  done  any  one  of  twenty 
other  things  accurately  if  it  had  fallen  to  his  lot,  and  training 
had  prepared  him  for  it.  He  might  have  been  a  great  gen- 
eral like  Washington  or  Grant,  he  might  have  been  a  great 
Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives;  any  one  of  twenty 
great  things  were  possible  to  him,  if  God's  providence  had 
led  him  to  them. 

Another  thing  I  verily  believe  about  him,  he  was  a  man  of 
rare  consecration.  Alas,  that  so  many  professing  Christians 
fritter  their  lives  away  in  asking  whether  they  shall  do  their 
duty.     That  question  never  seemed  to  come  to  him  after  his 


348  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

conversion.  As  with  St.  Paul,  once  for  all  he  answered  the 
question,  "Lord,  what  wilt  thou  have  me  do?"  Having  set- 
tled that  question  simply,  it  was  for  him  to  find  what  his  duty 
was,  and  that  this  good  man,  it  seems  to  me,  was  ever  ready 
to  spring  with  a  relish  and  gladness  to  do  and  never  to  waste 
his  time  in  asking  whether  or  not  a  duty  should  be  done. 

From  that  blundering  boyhood,  that  ignorant  and  illiterate 
boyhood  of  his,when,  as  an  attendant  of  Dr.  Kirk's  church  in 
Boston,  having  found  his  way  to  the  foot  of  the  cross,  he 
could  not  tell  enough  about  it  yet  for  a  year  to  be  admitted  to 
the  church  and  from  there  to  the  slums  of  Chicago,  so  awk- 
wardly done  at  first,  all  the  way  along  he  showed  the  spirit  of 
supreme  consecration  to  God,  to  duty  and  to  Jesus  Christ  and 
to  the  work  of  evangelism.  No  doubt  if  you  would  wake  him 
up  at  midnight  after  his  most  wearisome  labors,  when  utterly 
exhausted,  and  asked  him  to  lead  a  sinner  to  the  foot  of  the 
cross,  there  would  flash  from  his  eyes  a  look  that  would  have 
drawn  that  sinner  to  the  foot  of  the  cross.  He  was  from  the 
crown  of  his  head  to  the  sole  of  his  feet  consecrated  to  God, 
I  think,  to  this  great  work  of  Evangelization  to  which  God 
had  called  him.  He  was  also  a  man  of  one  book,  and  that 
was  a  great  thing  about  him.  He  loved  the  Bible,  he  be- 
lieved in  the  Bible,  he  knew  the  Bible  as  very  few  men  ever 
come  to  know  it.  He  used  it  truthfully  and  trustfully  in  his 
later  years.  The  immense  charity  which  the  Bible  teaches 
became  so  great  that  he  welcomed  to  the  platform  at  North- 
field  men  whose  views  about  the  Book  were  different  from 
his  own,  knowing  them  to  be  right  at  heart.  Witness  his 
roval  welcome  to  Henry  Drummond  and  George  Adam 
Smith.  But  for  himself  he  trusted  the  Book  and  loved  the 
Book  and  was  continually  reading  it  and  applying  it  to  the 
conscience  and  heart  of  man.  Few  men  I  have  ever  known, 
and  T  have  heard  him  speak  many  times,  seem  to  me  to  have 
had  such  a  power  with  the  Word.  He  was  not  a  great  reader 
of  other  books,  and  not  a  profound  student  of  books  of  the- 


WHAT  MOODY  WAS.  349 

ology  especially,  and  yet  he  became  a  profound  Christian 
teacher,  a  great  Christian  teacher  in  his  uSe  of  his  Bible,  as  his 
was  a  trustful  view  and  he  used  the  word  of  God  as  the  Son  of 
God  used  it  at  the  stormiest  period  of  his  hfe,  namely,  in  the 
desert  of  temptation  when  Satan  tried  him  with  all  the  arts, 
Jesus  kept  his  eye  on  the  devil,  and  put  his  hands  and  took  as 
though  from  any  place  in  the  Old  Testament,  and  He  drew  two 
arrows  from  the  shaft  of  Deuteronomy,  or  three  good  blades 
of  fine  point,  at  which  Satan  fled.  He  never  once  asked  Him- 
self the  question  whether  Moses  wrote  the  whole  Pentateuch 
or  not.  Now,  Mr.  Moody  used  his  Bible  just  as  trustfully  and 
it  answered  his  purpose  right  well. 

With  one  word  more  I  will  close.  He  was  gifted  by  God 
with  rare  power  of  generalship.  His  body  was  strong  and 
massive,  his  eye  was  keen  and  efificient,  his  will  was  a  great, 
commanding  will.  You  well  remember  how  he  would  raise 
that  arm  when  it  would  seem  almost  like  a  sword  of  a  general, 
and  when  his  voice  sounded  like  a  clarion.  He  was  a  great 
worker  and  was  able  to  manage  a  great  meeting  of  six,  ten, 
and  twelve  thousand  people.  The  sight  of  his  managing  such 
a  meeting  was  a  grand  phenomenon  to  any  student  of  human 
nature.  In  doing  that  work  he  commanded  the  ready 
acquiescence  of  the  people,  since  the  people,  our  English 
and  Scotch  friends,  all  are  obedient  in  such  a  meeting,  and 
he  was  the  master  of  the  situation,  a  man  fitted  to  be  a  great 
leader  of  evangelism  in  our  time.  But  he  has  passed  on  to  a 
more  excellent  glory,  and  I  hail  him  there  to-night,  "Servant 
of  God,  well  done;  thy  glorious  warfare  past,  the  battle 
fought,  the  victory  won,  and  thou  art  crowned  at  last." 


At  the  Funeral — An  Address. 

By  Hon.  John  Wanamaker. 

R.  Chairman:  This  is  a  stormy  night  to  stand  about 
a  grave  and  it  would  seem  as  if  all  the  tears  of 
the  country  had  come  into  Philadelphia  as  a  fit 
setting  for  a  memorial  service.  I  hardly  know 
how  to  speak  to-night,  or  to  try  to  speak. 
There  are  three  chapters  of  my  thoughts.  I  cannot  utter 
them  all.  First,  the  reminiscences  that  go  back  to  my  boy- 
hood when  Mr.  Moody  was  just  rising  into  his  young  man- 
hood, when  I  met  him  first,  or  the  story  of  the  two  hours 
after  tlie  funeral  service  at  Northfield,  or  chapter  three,  the 
lessons  of  such  a  life. 

To  take  one  perhaps  would  be  better.  The  newspapers  are 
full  of  the  incidents  of  this  great  life  which  for  years  to  come 
will  be  fresh  to  the  American  people.  That  was  a  life,  indeed. 
There  docs  not  seem  to  have  been  a  part  of  him  that  was  half 
asleep.  If  there  was  anything  that  Mr.  Moody  loved,  it  was 
life  and  he  was  the  embodiment  of  it,  physically,  mentally  and 
spiritually. 

AT  NORTHFIELD. 

It  might  interest  you  the  most,  perhaps,  to  have  a  little 
quiet  visit  for  a  few  moments  to  the  humble  home  where  he 
laid  him  down  in  the  chambers  oi  peace  with  his  face  towards 
the  siuu-isc  and  fell  asleep. 

No  one  who  came  to  Northfield  at  any  time  could  go  away 
without  a  deep  impression  of  its  sweet  riuiet,  as  though  the 
touch  of  an  inspired  life  was  over  all  the  hills.  And  how  im- 
pressive to  go  there  on  a  day  when  the  business  of  every  kind 
had  stopped,  and  the  people  with  mournful  faces,  those  that 
could  not  enter  the  church  standing  in  knots  about  the  village 


AT  THE  FUNERAL— AN  ADDRESS.  351 

and  on  the  roadside  and  a  large  church  not  large  enough  to 
contain,  perhaps,  the  students,  had  by  their  gracious  courtesy 
been  given  over  to  people  who  came  from  far  and  near  to  sit 
close  to  the  man  that  had  fallen  asleep.  It  would  be  impossi- 
ble to  convey  to  any  one's  mind  a  full  impression  of  that  after- 
noon. The  service  beginning  really  at  half-past  ten  in  the 
morning,  when  the  form  of  our  old  friend  was  lying  in  front 
of  the  pulpit  and  the  people  came  and  went  all  day,  until  2.30, 
when  the  services  began. 

To  attempt  to  tie  half  a  dozen  threads  out  of  those  wonder- 
ful words  that  were  spoken  would  be  almost  an  impossibility. 
I  am  simply  trying  to  give  you  an  impression  of  the  occasion. 
I  can  never  forget  the  influence  that  not  one  or  two  enthusias- 
tic friends  of  this  beloved  man  felt  in  that  hour,  but  that  was 
felt  by  all  the  people.  As  he  lay  there,  elevated  above  a  little 
bed  upon  which  they  had  laid  him,  it  seemed  as  though  he 
was  still  living.  Indeed,  you  will  remember,  some  of  you  that 
heard  him  on  his  last  visit  that  he  said:  "They  will  tell  you 
that  D.  L.  Moody  is  dead,  but  do  not  believe  it,  he  will  always 
be  living,  he  will  always  be  around."  But  one  could  hardly 
look  at  him  and  believe  that  he  was  other  than  asleep.  The 
same  kind  fellow  not  a  wrinkle  upon  his  face,  beautiful,  and  it 
seemed  as  though  the  sway  that  he  had  over  great  audiences 
when  he  stood  before  them  still  went  out  from  him  as  he  lay 
there  in  the  presence  of  the  people.  And  with  those  precious 
words  that  were  spoken  twilight  fell  upon  the  people,  and  then 
the  halt,  the  family  leaving,  and  being  met  on  the  outside  by 
thirty-two  students,  and  then  they  brought  the  casket  and 
the  bier,  a  long  platform  covered  with  flowers;  then  these 
young  fellows  came  out.  sixteen  on  each  side,  bearing  him 
silently  in  the  darkening  of  the  night,  the  long  procession  of 
people  following,  with  sobs,  up  to  Round  Top,  the  place  he 
loved  so  much.  O,  how  he  loved  this  earth,  and  he  would  say 
so  often,  "The  w^orld  is  very  good.  The  earth  is  a  good 
place.     I  have  had  a  very  good  time  in  it,  but  I  have  a  great 


352  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

deal  better  time  ahead."  It  was  an  exceedingly  interesting 
thing  to  know  how  fond  he  was  of  the  earth.  He  would  often 
say,  "No,  I  must  hurry  home  in  the  autumn  days,  I  want  to 
see  the  brown  earth  before  the  snow  covers  the  leaves."  So 
this  last  time  he  hurried  away  after  a  meeting  in  the  Wither- 
spoon  Hall,  where  he  gave  the  touch  for  the  evangelistic  ser- 
vices, starting  on  his  visit  to  the  schools,  and  then  in  the 
early  part  of  November  going  to  Kansas  City. 

It  does  seem  as  though  it  was  something  like  the  departure 
of  Elijah.  He  made  a  visit  to  the  schools.  Some  of  his 
friends  wanted  him  to  stay  in  the  late  autumn  in  the  city,  but 
no,  he  must  visit  the  schools  and  see  the  brown  earth  before 
the  snow  came.  Then  he  went  off  to  the  west  to  visit  the 
churches,  and  on  his  way  he  stopped  in  Philadelphia  to  utter 
the  great  sighs  that  filled  his  heart,  to  show  to  friends  the 
sign  of  tears  when  he  said,  "I  would  like  before  I  die  to  be 
used  of  God  to  move  one  great  city  in  the  east."  What  was  it 
Elijah  said?  "I  must  go  to  Gilgal  and  then  to  Jericho  and 
then  beyond  Jordan."  When  we  went  home  the  night  that 
he  was  in  the  city,  after  talking  about  the  Philadelphia  meet- 
ing, I  said  to  some  friends  at  my  house:  "Mr.  Moody  to- 
night seemed  more  pathetic  than  I  ever  saw  him  in  his  con- 
cern about  a  revival  of  religion  in  Philadelphia.  He  seemed 
to  me  as  he  talked  along  the  streets,  in  his  vehement  earnest- 
ness to  have  a  desire  that  it  might  be  arranged  that  he  could 
come  and  spend  a  winter  in  this  city  in  the  hope  of  another 
great  revival.  In  that  he  seemed  to  me  like  the  Prophet 
Elijah. 

AT  THE  GRAVE. 

At  the  parting,  as  I  stood  with  the  little  family  that  had 
been  kneeling  by  the  grave,  there  were  words  said  that  led  me 
to  stay  into  the  night  and  until  the  next  morning,  to  have  a 
little  family  talk,  trying  to  think  what  will  be  the  future  and 
what  will  be  done  to  keep  the  memory  of  our  old  friend  green, 


AT  THE  FUNERAL— AN  ADDRESS.  353 

and  also  as  an  encouragement  in  the  triiunph  of  a  life  so 
faithful. 

WITH  THE  FAMILY. 

I  will  give  you  just  a  few  words  that  came  from  the  lips  of 
the  woman  that  helped  to  make  his  life  so  great.  Mrs. 
Moody  herself,  she  and  her  boys,  and  the  one  girl,  sat  and 
told  the  story  of  those  last  hours.  How  the  father  said  again 
and  again,  "It  is  easy  to  go  away,  but  for  you,  but  for  you; 
seeing  that  there  is  no  dark  valley."  And  he  mentioned  one 
of  the  children  by  name,  something  that  was  very  sweet,  at 
which  some  people  will  wonder,  saying,  "We  shall  know  those 
that  have  gone  on."  This  dear  man  was  permitted  to  see  the 
children  and  grandchildren,  and  to  come  back  and  tell  about 
it.  I  can  see  the  radiant  face  of  dear  Mrs.  Moody  as  she 
said,  "Don't  you  think  that  God  gave  him  that  blessing  that 
he  might  return  and  speak  to  us?"  "Father,"  Will  said,  "cer- 
tainly died  three  times,  and  he  came  back  twice  to  tell  us  it 
was  not  hard  to  die;  to  tell  us  that  he  had  seen  heaven;  to  tell 
us  that  he  had  seen  our  family." 

O,  dear  friends,  God  does  not  forget  those  that  have  trusted 
him.  Is  there  anything  to  compare  to  what  has  been  vouch- 
safed to  this  great  old  soldier,  this  great  captain,  of  the  Imper- 
ial Guard  of  the  Master,  from  first  to  last  in  his  battle  of  life? 

A  PICTURE. 

I  want  you  to  take  the  picture  of  that  little  simple  home, 
filled  with  brightness  because  of  the  faith  of  that  family  bereft, 
and  because  of  what  they  had  been  permitted  to  see  in  the 
sunset  of  that  glorious  life  which  we  are  contemplating.  I 
have  thought  so  often,  as  I  have  gone  along  day  after  day, 
up  to  Round  Top  where  we  left  him,  that  it  was  something 
like  this,  that  old  cathedral  in  Venice,  where  behind  the  great 
altar  the  alabaster  columns  stand,that  seemingly  are  unim- 
portant to  look  at,  but  when  some  hand  with  a  lighted  taper 
stands  behind  them,  shine  with  crystal  and  tint  and  color, 
23 


354  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

until  the  very  light  of  the  morning  seems  to  be  shining 
through  them,  the  rays  of  the  sunset,  the  gorgeous  coloring 
that  comes  in  the  even-time.  So  Mr.  Moody,  like  a  great 
alabaster  column,  dull  and  dark  in  itself,  by  the  power  of  the 
light  of  an  unseen  hand  is  so  beautiful  that  we  stand  with 
wonder  and  joy  in  the  beholding. 

FINNEY,  WHITEFIELD  AND  WESLEY. 

It  seemed  that  Mr.  Finney  had  come  back  again,  that 
George  Whitefield  was  living  again,  that  one  could  look  into 
the  face  of  John  Wesley,  and  in  many  respects  he  was  like 
him,  in  his  simplicity,  in  his  wonderful  common  sense,  in  his 
magnificent  power  of  attention  to  details.  He  would  have 
been  one  of  the  most  superb  business  men,  in  my  judgment, 
if  it  had  been  the  providence  of  God  to  lead  him  into  business. 
As  you  looked  up  into  his  face  you  were  in  the  presence  of 
majesty,  and  it  showed  you  a  great  character.  Someone  says 
that  we  shall  never  see  the  like  of  him  again.  Why,  it  would 
be  as  impossible,  speaking"  from  a  human  standpoint,  to  re- 
place D.  L.  Moody,  as  it  would  be  to  replace  Abraham  Lin- 
coln. These  two  men,  as  Dr.  Cuyler  has  said,  will  stand 
before  the  American  people,  aye,  before  the  whole  world,  as 
two  of  the  greatest  characters  of  the  century.  None  of  us 
can  lay  to-night  at  his  feet  a  tribute  that  rises  to  the  desire  of 
our  hearts,  because  he  was  so  much  a  blessing  to  every  one 
who  had  the  privilege  of  knowing  him. 


How  Northfield  Seminary  Originated. 

By  Ira  D.  Saiikey. 

N  our  return  from  the  old  country,  Mr.  Moody  was 
spending  a  few  months  at  home;  one  day  was 
out  riding  in  his  httle  buggy,  a  neat  one-horse 
carriage  that  he  drove  around  the  country, 
and  he  was  seen  to  drive  away  up  onto 
one  of  the  mountain  tops  around  his  home,  and  it  seems  that 
after  arriving  near  the  top  of  the  mountain  he  came  across  a 
little  farmhouse,  with  a  very  few  acres  of  land,  and  indica- 
tions of  great  poverty.  There  on  that  barren  mountain  he 
found  a  family  that  he  had  known  as  a  boy  when  he  used  to 
climb  about  the  mountains  yonder  near  his  home.  He 
hitched  his  horse  to  the  fence  and  went  in  to  greet  his  old 
friend.  He  found  the  father  lying  on  a  bed  of  sickness,  and 
in  another  part  of  the  building  was  the  mother  also  lying  in 
bed  with  a  very  serious  illness.  After  greeting  them,  he  sat 
down  and  began  to  talk  with  them  a  little  while  and  as  he  was 
talking,  the  two  girls,  daughters  of  the  family,  came  into  the 
room  carrying  a  large  bundle  of  willows  they  had  gathered 
in  the  valley  of  the  Connecticut,  and  they  sat  down  and  began 
the  operation  of  making  little  willow  baskets,  and  Mr.  Moody 
became  very  much  interested  in  these  two  young  women  thus 
engaged,  and  he  said  to  them,  "Well,  what  is  your  object  in 
life?  What  are  you  going  to  do?"  Well,  they  said  they  would 
'ike  to  get  an  education,  if  they  could.  "We  have  a  good  cons- 
mon  school  education,  now,  but  if  we  could  get  a  good  edu- 
cation we  would  be  able,  possibly,  to  earn  money  enough  to 
support  our  parents,  who  are  so  poor,  by  teaching  but  as  it  is 
now,  ]\Ir.  Moody,  our  time  is  all  taken  up  in  just  trying  to 
make  a  little  money  to  keep  the  family  along  in  this  way,  as 
you  see." 


35^)  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

Mr.  Moody  thought  a  few  moments  and  then  he  said,  "Let 
us  pray,"  and  kneeUng  down  beside  that  poor  old  man,  and 
leaning  his  arm  on  the  bedside,  he  prayed  that  God  might 
spare  their  lives,  and  that  God  might  open  a  way  by  which  the 
family  might  be  helped,  and  when  the  prayer  was  ended  he 
bid  them  good-bye,  and  he  went  and  got  in  his  buggy  and 
started  down  the  mountain,  and  he  told  me  one  day,  a  month 
after  that,  he  said:  "Mr.  Sankey,  before  I  reached  the  foot  of 
the  mountain,  God  had  made  it  very  clear  to  me  what  I  should 
do  to  help  these  two  young  women  and  all  young  women  of 
New  England  similarly  situated  that  have  character  and  abili- 
ty and  no  money  with  which  to  get  an  education;"  and  by  the 
time  he  reached  his  home  the  matter  of  the  Farm  School  for 
such  girls  was  fully  evolved  in  his  mind,  and  he  went  on  to 
build  not  long  after  that.  I  remember  very  well  the  day  when 
yonder  in  the  streets  of  Northfield,  under  the  beautiful  elm 
trees,  the  foundation  of  that  first  building  in  connection  with 
the  school  was  laid.  Mr.  Durand,  whom  many  of  you  gen- 
tlemen remember,  the  great  lawyer  of  Boston,  the  founder  of 
Wellesley  College,  was  there  as  an  invited  guest.  Mr.  Moody 
having  lived  in  his  house  and  home  during  some  time  in  1876, 
in  Boston,  he  came  up  to  help  Mr.  Moody  lay  this  foundation 
stone,  and  the  corner  stone  of  the  building,  and  a  little  inci- 
dent occurred  which  I  will  tell  you  about,  which  moved  the 
hearts  of  all  present.  After  Mr.  Durand  and  others  had 
spoken,  it  became  the  duty  of  Mr.  Moody  to  lay  this  corner- 
stone, and  he  got  up  on  the  platform  and  made  a  little  address 
and  holding  up  before  the  audience  a  beautiful  silver  trowel 
with  some  writing  on  it.  he  said,  "My  friends  have  secured 
this  beautiful  trowel  with  which  to  lay  this  stone,  but  it  is 
rather  too  beautiful  for  that  purpose,  and  I  will  not  use  such 
an  instrument.  Yesterday  I  went  up  to  my  mother's  house," 
pointing  over  his  shoulder  to  his  mother's  home,  within  a 
little  distance  from  where  he  stood  and  he  said:  "I  went  up 
into  the  garret  of  my  mother's  home  and  I  looked  around  in 


now  NORTHFIELD  SEMINARY  ORIGINATED.       357 

the  old  garret  where  I  used  to  romp  and  play  about  as  a  boy, 
and  there  I  found  this  trowel,"  holding  up  an  old  trowel  in 
his  hand.  "This  is  my  father's  trowel.  He  used  to  earn  the 
bread  for  the  family  by  this  instrument.  It  is  a  little  worn 
and  rusty,  but  it  is  quite  good  enough  to  lay  this  corner- 
stone," and  he  went  to  work  and  laid  it  with  the  trowel  his 
father  had  used  forty  years  ago.  And  God  blessed  the  laying 
of  that  stone  and  to-day,  I  suppose,  there  is  a  million  dol- 
lars' worth  of  property  on  those  hills.  They  have  followed 
up  the  building  with  other  buildings  in  which  they  give  a  free 
invitation  to  young  women  and  young  men  who  have  charac- 
ter and  ability,  but  no  money. 


Lessons  from  Mr.  Moody's  Character  and 
Career. 

By  Rev.  Stephen  W.  Dana,  D.D. 

HIRTY  years  ago  the  Rev.  Dr.  Thomas  Guthrie 
was  the  most  popular  preacher  in  Scotland.  As  he 
ncared  the  end  he  said  to  his  children  that  he  de- 
sired no  words  of  praise  on  his  tombstone,  but 
that  he  would  like  something  that  would  attract 
the  passers-by  and  turn  their  thoughts  Heavenward.  So,  on 
the  marble  there  was  chiseled  these  majestic  words  of  Amos: 
"Seek  Him  that  turneth  the  shadow  of  death  into  the  mori*- 
ing;  the  Lord  is  His  name." 

We  are  now  called  to  commemorate  the  life  of  one  who, 
in  the  name  of  God  has  had  the  high  mission  of  turning  multi- 
tudes from  "The  shadow  of  death  into  the  morning."  Aside 
from  half  a  dozen  men  distinguished  in  military  and  naval  cir- 
cles, no  man  in  America  was  so  widely  known  both  in  the 
United  States  and  across  the  water,  as  Dwight  L:  Moody. 
No  one  was  remembered  more  gratefully  for  blessings  re- 
ceived. Judged  by  all  Biblical  standards  he  was  a  great  man. 
He  had  those  elements  of  leadership  which  would  have  placed 
him  at  the  front  whatever  might  have  been  his  chosen  occu- 
pation. But  he  had  the  Master's  test  of  greatness;  he  came 
"not  to  be  ministered  unto,  but  to  minister." 

It  w^as  not  my  privilege  to  know  Mr.  Moody  intimately.  I 
in  common  with  other  pastors  of  this  city,  worked  with  him 
in  those  great  meetings  in  '76.  I  have  met  him  several 
times,  but  enjoyed  no  intimacy  with  him.  Tt  is  not  my 
privilege,  therefore,  to  deal  in  reminiscence,  nor  is  it  my  pur- 
pose to  speak  with  any  fulness  of  his  life.  I  do  desire,  however, 
to  draw  some  lesr.ons  from  his  character  and  career,  which  I 
trust  may  be  helpful  to  all. 


LESSONS  FROM  HIS  CHARACTER  AND  CAREER.     359 

The  first  which  I  mention  was  his  high  undivided  purpose. 
So  far  as  we  can  discover  by  word  and  act,  his  master  pas- 
sion was  to  win  men  to  Christ  and  train  them  for  Christian 
service.  What  surprises  us  was  the  intensity  and  enthusi- 
asm with  which  he  adhered  to  this  high  purpose  to  the  last. 
Unfortunately,  many  run  well  for  a  time.  They  have  un- 
daunted zeal  for  a  few  years  and  then  they  slacken.  So 
many  ministers  and  evangelists  fafi  short  of  their  highest  be- 
cause they  stop  midway  in  their  career,  losing  that  intensity 
of  fervor  which  characterized  them  at  the  beginning  of  their 
ministry.  Many  evangelists  for  example,  prepare  a  set  of 
sermons  which  they  go  about  delivering  in  different  places,  in 
the  same  language,  in  the  same  tone,  voice  and  gestures,  and 
the  result  is  they  become  stereotyped,  mechanical  and  unin- 
teresting. They  stop  reading,  studying,  thinking,  and  it  is  a 
clear  case  of  arrested  development,  and  the  result  is  they  are 
shorn  of  their  power  and  their  last  days  are  by  no  means  their 
best  days.  With  Mr.  Moody  there  was  no  dead  line  of  fifty; 
he  was  a  man  of  faith,  of  prayer  and  zeal  to  the  end,  and  we 
should  all  agree  that  the  last  ten  years  were  the  most  faithful 
and  far  reaching  in  their  influence  of  any  period  of  his  life. 

If  we  desire  ourselves  to  know  how  to  keep  up  this  enthu- 
siasm we  shall  find  it  by  examining  the  word  itself,  which 
means  literally  "God  within  us."  Mr.  Moody  kept  God  with- 
in him  and  this  it  w^as  that  sustained  him  to  the  end. 

The  second  characteristic  of  the  man  which  I  mention  was 
his  growth  by  use  of  talents  which  he  had.  He  consecrated 
all  his  gifts  and  capacities  unto  God.  There  are  many  per- 
sons who  waste  their  days  in  wishing  they  were  some  one  else 
and  because  they  cannot  do  what  they  think  to  be  a  great 
thing,  they  will  do  nothing  for  the  Master. 

When  young  Moody  came  into  Boston  he  was  a  verdant 
farmer's  boy  with  no  knowledge  of  the  world  or  of  society, 
and  when  received  into  the  church  neither  his  pastor,  the 
famous  Dr.  Kirk,  nor  his  Sunday  school  teacher  Mr.  Kimball, 


36o  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

known  as  the  "great  debt  raiser,"  had  any  expectation  that 
this  young  man  was  to  rise  to  any  distinction  in  the  Christian 
church.  But,  he  at  once  went  to  work  for  Christ,  at  Boston, 
and  a  httle  later  at  Chicago.  He  did  not  feel  competent  to 
teach,  but  he  gathered  in  scholars  for  the  Sunday  school. 
When  he  took  a  class  of  these  ingathered  children  he  felt  the 
need  of  study  to  prepare  himself  for  that  great  work.  From 
that  hour  on  the  Bible  was  the  great  book  to  him.  He  began 
to  speak  at  evening  meetings  and  to  take  part  in  the  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association.  He  had  the  gift  of  oratory,  and 
though  he  never  acquired  the  power  always  to  speak  gram- 
matically, yet  he  used  forceful  English,  always  was  in  dead 
earnest,  and  every  one  was  convinced  of  the  sincerity  of  his 
convictions. 

What  I  want  to  emphasize  just  here  is  that  Mr.  Moody  did 
not  rise  up  by  leaps  and  bounds,  and  did  not  become  such  a 
power  in  swaying  thousands  at  once.  He  was  willing  to  ac- 
cept and  utilize  the  day  of  feeble  beginnings.  He  gained  by 
giving;  grew  stronger  by  consecrating  and  utilizing  what  he 
had  unto  God. 

The  third  noticeable  characteristic  in  the  man  was  his 
teachable  spirit,  his  open  eyed  vision,  his  readiness  to  change 
w^ith  changing  conditions.  This  is  noticeable  in  the  great 
educational  work  with  which  he  had  identified  himself.  Peo- 
ple generally  think  of  him  only  as  an  evangelist;  but.  unless 
I  am  mistaken,  twenty-five  years  hence  he  will  be  remem- 
bered more  as  an  educator  than  as  a  preacher  to  the  masses. 

He  had  not  been  long  in  his  career  before  he  felt  that  an 
evangelist's  work  must  be  supplemented  by  teaching  and 
training.  The  object  of  evangelists  is  to  bring  persons  to 
decide  for  Christ,  then  as  disciples  they  nuist  be  taught  and 
trained.  He  had  a  success  among  students,  among  colleges 
and  universities  in  this  country,  in  Scotland  and  in  England, 
which  led  him  to  feel  a  deep  interest  in  them.  His  interest 
in  education  is  marked  in  several  different  ways. 


LESSONS  FROM  HIS  CHARACTER  AND  CAREER.     361 

(a)  He  came  to  have  an  annual  gathering  of  students  for 
conference  at  Northfield;  representatives  came  from  a  large 
number  of  colleges  in  our  own  country  and  other  countries. 
Fired  by  his  presence  and  by  the  speakers  that  he  gathered 
around  him,  these  young  men  went  back  to  their  several  col- 
leges and  universities  and  became  centers  of  spiritual  power. 
No  small  share  of  the  good  work  in  our  higher  educational 
institutions  during  the  last  ten  years  is  traceable  to  these  con- 
ferences. 

(b)  He  established  the  Bible  Institute  at  Chicago,  the  pur- 
pose of  which  was  to  train  lay  W'orkers  for  intelligent  Chris- 
tian service. 

(c)  He  had  also  great  religious  conferences  at  Northfield, 
the  object  of  which  was  to  strengthen  and  deepen  the  piety  of 
believers,  making  them  more  effective  Christian  witnesses. 

(d)  There  was  also  the  gathering  of  young  women  of  dif- 
ferent educational  institutions  somewhat  similar  to  the  con- 
ferences of  college  men. 

(e)  And  last  of  all,  and  more  enduring  than  all  are  the 
schools  which  he  established  at  Northfield  and  Mt.  Hermon, 
where  about  six  hundred  pupils  are  now  being  educated  at  a 
moderate  sum,  all  of  them  under  decided  Christian  influence. 

The  last  thing  that  I  shall  mention  is  the  fact  that  he  had 
such  a  sterling  Christian  character  and  retained  his  good 
name  unto  the  last.  He  did  not  live  for  display,  or  fame,  or 
money.  There  are  many  ways  in  which  he  could  have  ac- 
quired a  large  fortune  had  he  chosen,  but  like  the  apostle  he 
w^as  continually  saying,  "This  one  thing  I  do."  His  master 
passion,  of  which  I  have  spoken,  remained  uppermost  to  the 
last.  We  used  to  think  that  if  persons  had  well  established 
Christian  principles  at  twenty-one,  they  were  safe  unto  the 
end;  but,  as  we  have  seen  so  many  men,  ministers,  evangel- 
ists and  laymen  who  after  a  long  career  of  Christian  activity 
in  the  church  of  God,  go  down  after  fifty  or  sixty,  that  it  be- 
comes us  all  to  be  w^atchful  and  prayerful  unto  the  end.     Life 


362  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

has  its  perils  from  infancy  until  old  age.  Moody  was  not 
shorn  of  his  power  on  account  of  anything  which  brought 
disgrace  to  the  cause  of  Christ  or  by  a  series  of  foolish  utter- 
ances or  acts  which  deprived  him  of  his  influence.  Many 
were  not  attracted  to  him.  Many  did  not  care  to  hear  him 
preach.  But  those  who  differed  from  him  most  widely  in 
his  teaching  and  in  his  methods  honored  him  as  a  man  and 
believed  that  he  was  a  true  servant  of  God. 

Fortunately,  all  the  characteristics  which  I  have  mentioned, 
his  high,  undivided  purpose,  his  consecration  of  all  the  talents 
that  he  had  unto  God,  and  his  growth  through  their  use.  his 
teachable  spirit,  his  willingness  to  adapt  himself  to  changed 
conditions  and  his  high  sterling  character,  are  traits  which 
every  one  can  imitate  and  which  every  one  ought  to  emulate. 


Mr.  Moody's  Sincerity. 

By  Rev.  Floyd  W.  Tomkins. 

T  DOES  not  seem  to  me  that  it  is  altogether  a  sorrow- 
ful time  when  we  meet  together  around  the  grave.  1 
love  to  think  that  we  are  gathered  around  the  throne 
of  God  in  heaven  and  looking  into  the  face  of  the 
Father  and  hearing  the  welcome,  and  knowing  that 
this  is  not  all  of  life,  that  we  are  to  live  hereafter,  and  hoping 
and  praying  that  a  certain  portion  of  His  spirit  may  fall  upon 
us.     Even  if  he  was  Elijah,  it  is  a  fittmg  promise  then  that 
God  will  look  upon  us  as  Elisha  and  that  we  may  look  upon 
him  as  he  goes  up  into  heaven  and  that  we  may  receive  a 
measure  of  his  spirit.     What  is  the  spirit  saying?     It  is  the 
spirit  that  answers.     He  was  a  perfect  man.     He  could  not 
bear  anything  that  was  insincere.     The  version  of  the  word 
applied  to  him  pre-eminently, "The  pure  in  heart  they  shall  see 
God."  Purity  was  one  of  the  special  characteristics  of  Mr. 
Moody,  and  another  thing  was  his  transparentness.     There 
are  a  great  many  people  in  this  world  of  a  mixed  character. 
There  are  a  great  many  people  in  this  world  who  act  from 
mixed  motives.     Mr.  Moody  was  absolutely  sincere,  abso- 
lutely pure-minded,  absolutely  true,  and  therefore  he  saw 
God.     This  sincerity  of  his,  dear  friends,  enabled  him  first  to 
believe  in  a  sincerity  of  God,  and  the  power  of  his  preaching, 
it  seems  to  me,  pre-eminently,  was  that  he  had  knowledge, 
and  was  indued  with  the  spirit  of  God  and  was  a  man  of  God, 
so  it  was  nothing  to  him  when  he  read  God's  word,  he  would 
simply  say,  "Thus  saith  the  Lord,"  and  he  would  act  upon  it, 
and  bid  others  to  act  upon  it.  You  know  how,  in  those  crowd- 
ed meetings,  when  sinners  were  touched  at  heart,  he  would 
say  to  them  simply,  "The  Lord  says  he  will  forgive  you." 


364  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

He  had  no  doubt  about  God's  word,  and  he  wished  to  impress 
upon  them  the  certainty  of  the  fact,  he  believed  in  the  cer- 
tainty of  God.  He  says,  "Do  we  believe  in  it?  Do  we 
really  read  the  word  of  God  with  a  desire  to  impress  its 
truthfulness  on  our  own  hearts?"  As  he  was  true  to  himself 
he  was  true  to  God,  and  believed  in  Him,  He  tells  us  of  the 
necessity  that  the  churches  should  be  sincere.  He  could  have 
very  little  patience  with  a  great  deal  of  church  life  because 
he  recognized  its  insincerity,  he  recognized  its  formality,  he 
recognized  that  many  churches  in  the  community  were  places 
where  the  spirit  of  God  never  entered.  You  remember  about 
the  church  in  Boston,  we  will  say  it  was  a  Boston  church,  it 
would  not  do  to  say  it  was  a  Philadelphia  church,  where  a 
man  desired  to  enter  the  church,  to  join  it  as  a  member,  and 
he  was  not  very  wealthy,  he  was  not  very  polished  in  his  man- 
ners, and  the  people  in  the  church  thought  they  would  rather 
not  have  him  as  a  member;  but  he  continued  to  knock  at  the 
door  of  the  trustees,  and  they  told  him  there  was  no  vacancy 
just  then,  and  he  was  told  to  come  back  after  he  had  talked 
with  God  about  it.  He  kept  on,  his  mind  filled  with  deter- 
mination to  join  that  church,  and  he  came  back  and  said  to 
the  trustees  that  he  wished  to  enter  the  church.  They  said 
to  him,  "Did  you  talk  to  God  about  it?"  He  said,  "Yes,  I 
did."  "What  did  the  Lord  say?"  "The  Lord  said  He  had 
been  trying  to  get  into  that  church  for  about  six  years,  and 
He  would  be  very  glad  if  I  could  get  in." 

I  think  that  Mr.  Moody  recognized  that  in  so  many  of  our 
churches  there  is  a  lot  of  insincerity.  That  the  church  is 
nothing  but  a  poor  miserable  church  club.  That's  the  reason 
that  Mr.  Moody  spoke  so  many  times  of  reviving  the  churches 
so  that  the  church  would  do  God's  work;  that  the  church  must 
stand  where  it  professed  to  stand;  that  it  nmst  do  God's  work 
sincerely  and  not  loosely.  This  sincerity  of  his  made  him 
believe  in  the  influence  of  every  man,  and  in  the  importance 
of  every  man  being  sincere.     He  preached  the  necessity  of 


MR.   MOODY'S   SINCERITY.  365 

morality,  the  necessity  of  faith,  and  more  than  all  he  preached 
the  necessity  of  the  honesty  of  the  individual  man  in  his  rela- 
tion to  God.  He  did  not  believe  in  keeping  anything  back,  or 
in  concealing  anything,  so  that  he  could  look  honestly  into 
the  divine,  open  face  of  God. 

The  sincerity  in  his  own  nature  made  him  believe  in  God's 
truthfulness,  made  him  believe  in  the  necessary  purity  of  the 
church  members  and  made  him  believe  in  the  influence  of 
purity  and  truthfulness  of  every  individual  member.  I  hope 
every  one  will  take  in  these  thoughts  of  the  necessity  of  sin- 
cerity and  truthfulness  and  purity  before  God,  so  that  hence- 
forth they  will  strive  by  the  grace  of  God,  above  all  else;  for 
sincerity,  for  pure-heartedness,  for  honesty  of  purpose,  hon- 
esty of  life  before  God;  nothing  kept  back,  nothing  concealed, 
w^hich  shall  make  us  believe  that  God  means  what  he  says, 
which  will  make  us  believe  that  the  church  must  be  what  she 
pretends  to  be,  which  will  make  us  believe  that  we  ourselves 
can  receive  God's  blessing  by  appearing  before  him  pure 
hearted. 


My  Last  Talk  with  Moody. 

By  Wayland  Hoyt,  D.D. 

HE  last  talk  I  had  with  Mr.  Moody  was  but  a  few 
weeks  before  he  died;  but  a  few  days  before  his 
last  great  mission  in  Kansas  City.  Had  I  thought 
of  it  as  the  last,  I  had  more  perfectly  treasured  it, 
but  how  frequently  it  happens  that  we  do  not,  at 
the  time  of  them,  rightly  estimate  our  best  treasure. 

I  was  making  my  way  to  address  a  Christian  Endeavor 
Convention  in  Windsor,  Vermont.  In  the  depot  at  Spring- 
field, Mass.,  I  met  Mr.  Moody.  There,  and  for  some  time 
thereafter  in  the  train,  our  talk  went  on.  This  was  the  first 
lesson  his  talk  taught  me — tirelessness  in  the  Master's  ser- 
vice. He  was  telling  me  how  he  was  just  coming  from  a  two 
weeks'  daily  singing  and  preaching  in  New  York  and  Brook- 
lyn, and  instead  of  thinking  of  resting  a  little,  all  his  thought 
was  al:)Out  when  best,  and  how  quickly,  he  could  plunge  into 
further  service.  I  thought  the  question,  though  I  did  not  ask 
it,  "Do  you  never  rest?" 

I  think  Mr.  Moody  stands  before  us  as  a  splendid  instance 
of  a  sturdy  tirelessness.  Does  not  his  life  come  closest  to  the  i 
strenuous  urgency  of  the  Master  when  He  said,  ""'!'Iy  meat  is 
to  do  tlie  will  of  Him  that  sent  me,  and  to  finish  His  work." 
Back  there  in  those  early  years  in  Chicago,  those  four  pews 
hired  in  the  church  he  joined,  and  by  his  efforts  kept  steadily 
full  of  young  men;  that  Sunday  school  established  by  him 
in  the  Chicago  slums,  and  the  Tabernacle  which  came  out  of 
it;  that  swift  re-building  of  the  Tabernacle  in  the  heart  of  the 
foundations  of  the  burnt  district,  though  his  own  home  had 
gone  up  in  the  flames;  the  personal,  persistent  preaching  to 
men  and  women  about  the  Lord  Jesus  as  we  meet  them 
along  the  ways  of  the  daily  life;  that  earnest  and  quick  seizure 


MY  LAST  TALK  WITH  MOODY.  367 

of  new  methods  through  which  to  urge  on  the  Master's  cause, 
like  that  first  Christian  convention  in  Boston;  the  great 
meetings  which  began  to  grow  up  around  him  on  both  sides 
of  the  Atlantic;  his  helping  hand  to  the  Young  Men's  Chris- 
tian Associations  everywhere;  the  summer  meeting  at  North- 
field;  the  schools  at  Northfield;  in  and  up  to  and  into  the 
last  great  meeting  at  Kansas  City — where  the  untiring  war- 
rior was  stricken — tirelessness  for  Christ;  that  trumpet  call 
sounds  to  all  of  us  from  Mr.  Moody's  life. 

I  would  we  might  all  listen  to  it.  I  would  we  might  all  catch 
at  least  some  of  the  contagion  of  that  Christian  energy.  If 
we  did,  if  such  infection  were  wide  spread,  nothing  could 
stand  before  the  church  of  Christ,  the  land  would  be  shaken 
with  revival,  the  millennium  would  not  be  distant. 

Another  lesson  taught  me  by  that  last  talk  with  Mr.  Moody 
was:  Upon  what  to  put  main  emphasis.  I  shall  never  forget 
a  remark  he  dropped.  He  was  speaking  of  a  difficulty  which, 
especially  in  these  later  years,  was  confronting  him.  This 
was  the  difiFiCulty:  The  crowding  to  his  meetings  of  the  pro- 
fessedly Christian  people  and  the  thereby  shutting  him 
away  from  access  to  the  emburdened  people,  to  those  who  di  1 
not  spiritually  know  the  Lord.  This  was  the  remark  he 
made,  "My  reputation  is  my  hindrance."  I  am  sure  Mr. 
i  Moody  valued  his  reputation  as  every  true  man  ought.  But 
the' remark  revealed  the  beauty  and  deep  self  sacrifice  and 
humility  of  Mr.  Moody.  The  place  which  the  Christian 
should  always  put  main  emphasis,  viz.:  not  on  himself,  but 
rather  and  always  on  his  Lord  and  his  Lord's  cause  and  work. 
I  am  entirely  sure  Mr.  Moody  would  have  at  once  and  gladly 
forgone  his  own  vast  reputation  for  the  sake  of  winning  souls 
to  Jesus.  Such  ought  to  be  our  spirit — the  lesser  thought 
ourselves,  the  overtopping  thought,  our  Lord  and  our  Lord's 
work.  Dr.  Trumbull  tells  how  in  Moody's  earlier  days,  in 
Chicago  an  over  zealous  critic  who  was  not  an  over  active 
worker,  took  Moody  to  task  for  his  defects  in  speech. 


368  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

"You  oughtn't  to  attempt  to  speak  in  public,  Moody.  You 
make  many  mistakes  in  grammar." 

"I  know  I  make  mistakes,"  said  Moody,  "and  I  lack  a  great 
many  things;  but  I'm  doing  the  best  I  can  with  what  I've  got. 
But,  look  here,  my  friend,  you've  got  grammar  enough ;  what 
are  you  doing  with  it  for  Jesus?" 

Another  lesson  that  last  talk  with  Mr.  Moody  taught  me 
was  his  invincible  faith  in  Jesus  Christ  and  in  Him  only,  as 
the  world's  hope  and  Savior.  "Did  you  ever  know  so  many 
isms?"  he  said,  "Theosophism,  Christian  scienceism,  etc.?" 

But  the  one  thing  he  was  as  hungry  to  do  then,  as  he  had 
been  from  the  earliest  days  of  his  Christian  career,  was  where- 
ever  possible,  and  as  wisely  as  possible,  and  the  best  he  could, 
to  preach  Jesus  Christ.  This  was  burning  in  him  in  those  last 
days  and  with  undiminished  flame;  and  as  he  left  me  to  leave 
the  train,  to  tell  of  Jesus  to  the  girls  in  Mt.  Holyoke  Sem- 
inary, I  felt  myself  girded  with  a  stronger  purpose  to  give 
myself  to  the  telling  of  Jesus  Christ. 

May  the  great  example  and  vast  genius  of  Mr.  Moody  in 
doing  this,  make  us  all,  and  impel  us  all,  to  the  doing  likewise 
and  more  earnestly  and  steadily  than  we  ever  have  before. 


Dwight  L.  Moody  as  a  Man. 

By    Kerr    Boyce    Tupper,    D.D.,  LL.D. 

F  we  could  transfer  ourselves  back  two  hundred  years 
in  the  world's  history  and  stand,  on  July  loth, 
1686,  in  Notre  Dame,  in  Paris,  we  should  find  the 
great  cathedral  presenting  a  grand  and  august 
scene.  Within  its  aisles  are  gathered  the  bravest 
men  and  the  fairest  women  of  France.  It  is  a  notable  day  in 
French  history.  To  the  sorrow  of  the  nation  a  distinguished 
statesmaii  has  died,  an  heroic  warrior,  the  Prince  of  Conde; 
and  his  funeral  services  are  holding.  The  orator  of  the 
occasion  is  Bossuet,  the  eminent  and  eloquent  chaplain  of 
Louis  XIV  court.  He  stands  over  the  bier  a  moment,  mo- 
tionless and  silent.  He  is  overcome  by  the  grandeur  of  the 
occasion  and  the  nobleness  of  the  life  which  he  is  about  to 
portray.  At  last,  with  deep  emotion,  he  speaks,  and  these 
are  the  memorable  words  with  which  he  introduces  his  match- 
less oration:  "At  the  moment  that  I  open  my  lips  to  celebrate 
the  immortal  glory  of  Louis  Bourbon,  Prince  of  Conde,  I 
find  myself  equally  overwhelmed  by  the  greatness  of  the  sub- 
ject, and,  if  I  may  avow  it,  by  the  uselessness  of  the  task.  For 
what  part  of  the  habitable  world  has  not  heard  of  the  victories 
of  this  prince  and  the  wonders  of  his  life?" 

So,  as  I  endeavor  to  pay  an  humble  tribute  to  him  of 
whom  we  all  thin!:  this  hour,  the  impulse  of  my  heart  is  to 
reiterate,  with  appropriate  change,  the  words  of  the  distin- 
guished court  preacher  of  the  seventeenth  century:  At  the 
moment  I  open  my  lips  to  celebrate  the  memory  of  Dwight 
L.  Moody — citizen,  philanthropist,  Oiristian,  man — I  find 
myself  impressed  with  both  the  greatness  of  the  subject  and 
the  uselessness  of  the  task.  For  what  part  of  the  Christian 
world  has  not  heard  of  his  name  and  fame,  his  gifts  and 
24 


,i7o  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

graces,  his  power  and  possessions,  his  worth  and  work.  And 
who  of  us  that  knew  him  feels  not  the  incHnation  to  say  to- 
day: The  workl  was  richer  when  lie  was  Ixjrn,  better  while  he 
lived,  and  sadder  since  he  has  gone.  His  warm  heart,  his 
genial  smile,  his  strong,  clear  intellect,  his  uncompromising 
fidelity  to  convictions,  his  pure  private  life,  his  unselfish  pub- 
lic service,  his  firm,  unwavering  devotion  to  Jesus  Christ  as 
Sovereign  and  Savior — these  are  virtues  our  whole  nation 
delights  to  recall  to-day  in  connection  with  this  child  of  God, 
this  brother  of  man,  this  heir  of  immortality.  Of  such  a  one 
as  Dwiglit  L.  Moody  we  may  not  say  "He  is  dead;"  only 
"Emigravit,"  he  has  emigrated — translated  to  a  fairer,  sweet- 
er clime. 

Js.  special  aspeot  of  Mr.  Moody's  career  would  I  emphasize 
for  a  moment,  and  that  a  most  attractive  aspect,  namelv  his 
manliness.  Manliness  is  what  one  weighs  morally,  what  he 
can  lift  morally,  what  he  can  do  morally.  It  is  the  substance 
of  life  when  the  cliafif  has  been  blown  away.  It  is  devotion  to 
right  in  a  large  way  and  on  a  generous  scale.  It  stands  ever 
upon  the  platform  of  a  broad  and  generous  self  respect.  It  is 
based  upon  a  high  and  reverent  sense  of  the  inherent  dignity 
of  manhood  as  in  itself  and  everywhere  the  noblest  work  of 
Clod  on  earth.  In  short,  manliness  is  that  which  lies  at  the 
base  of  true  character — that  which  character  requires  to 
round  itself  out  with,  fill  itself  up  with,  make  itself  complete. 
Mr.  Moody  had  that  which  is  more  than  titles  or  position, 
elo(|uence  or  wealth;  a  royalty  which  will  never  wane  nor 
fade,  a  sovereignty  that  will  continue  to  be  found  forever; 
that  i)osscssion  of  character  which  abides  ever  in  the  world's 
memory  and  the  world's  love — that  thing  we  call  character, 
manhood,  manliness,  manfulness.  Above  all.  our  brother 
was  a  Christian  man, 

A  SPIRITUALLY  MINDED  MAN. 

This  was  his  richest  quality — a  quality  without  which  all 
his  genius  would  have  been  a  fatal  gift,  all  his  talent  a  hoi- 


DWIGHT  L.  MOODY  AS  A  MAN.  371 

low  unveracity,  all  his  eloquence  a  glittering  sham.  Inter- 
woven in  his  being  were  such  qualities  as  majesty,  nobility, 
purity,  sympathy,  self-sacrifice,  and  these,  daily  revealed, 
ever  presenting  an  image  of  beautiful  proportion  and  after  a 
Heavenly  Original. 

The  fact  is  the  man  v.as  genuine  through  and  through, 
natural,  unaffected,  beautifully  sincere,  an  approach  to  that 
ideal  character  which  the  poet  describes  as  "the  white  flower 
of  a  blameless  life."  Light  is  never  so  intense  as  when  re- 
flected; the  gospel  is  never  so  mighty  as  when  exemplified, 
and  our  brother  exemplified  the  gospel  as  well  as  preached 
it.  He  not  simply  promulgated  the  doctrine  of  the  beauty 
of  holiness  and  the  divineness  of  services,  but  he  incarnated  it. 
I  heard  him  once  say  that  a  man  is  a  Christian  not  in  propor- 
tion to  the  truth  he  put  into  his  belief,  but  in  proportion  to 
the  truth  he  put  into  his  Hfe.  He  was  himself  the  living 
illustration  of  the  exalted  principles  of  the  gospel  of  Christ. 
He  matched  his  sermons  with  services,  his  creed  with  charac- 
ter, his  doctrines  with  doing.  As  has  been  said  of  another,  it 
may  be  said  of  him:  He  had  three  great  aims  in  his  ministry: 
The  first,  to  spiritualize  himself;  the  second,  to  idealize  his 
people;  the  third,  to  scripturalize  his  sermons.  More  than 
those  who  knew  him  not  intimately  realized,  our  consecrated 
brother,  believing  that  piety  within  must  precede  growth 
without,  would  spend  hour  after  hour  weekly  in  looking  into 
himself;  would  retire  into  solitude  and  hold  dialogues  with 
his  soul;  would  pour  out  his  heart  in  earnest,  agonizing 
prayer  to  God  for  deeper,  fuller,  more  devoted  life;  and  thus 
living  in  the  very  atmosphere  of  heaven  the  sunshine  and 
showers  from  above  matured  the  fruits  and  blossoms  of  his 
graces  into  fruit  fit  for  the  golden  garners  of  immortality  it- 
self. And  fresh  from  these  communions  in  God  he  would 
plunge  into  the  preparation  of  some  earnest  discourse,  or  go 
out  to  cheer  and  comfort  some  sorrow-stricken  soul. 
ChfiraQteristically,  Mr.  Moody  was  a  man  who  believed  in 


372  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

God's  word  as  the  infallible  revelation  of  the  Eternal  God.  The 
Bible  was  to  him  oracle  of  faith,  manual  of  devotion,  charter 
of  liberty  and  inspiration  of  life.  He  had  no  sympathy  with 
the  fine  intellectual  dreamers  of  our  day  who  delight  to  at- 
tack every  precious  article  of  our  evangelical  faith;  to  grind 
down  smooth  all  sharp  Bible  diilferences  respecting  sin  and 
salvation;  to  evaporate  sin  into  an  inexcusable  infirmity,  and 
even  weave  the  shroud  for  the  soul's  career  in  a  hopeless 
grave.  All  these  things  our  Bible-loving  and  Christ-extoll- 
ing brother  flung  away  from  his  mind  with  a  Pauline  God- 
forbid.  For  popularity  he  never  sacrificed  an  iota  of  reli- 
gious conviction  of  faith.  The  old,  old  gospel  in  the  old,  old 
Book,  told  in  the  old,  old  way — this  was  his  delight;  his 
strength;  his  inspiration.  His  motto  was  the  Bible  as  God 
gave  it — no  addition  to  it,  no  substraction  from  it,  no  altera- 
tion in  it.  He  believed  in  a  Bible  uncovered  by  human  ritual, 
untainted  by  human  tradition. 

And  then  Mr.  Moody  was  always  true 

TO  JESUS  CHRIST  AND  HIM  CRUCIFIED. 

He  seemed  to  be  constantly  saying,  with  Dr.  Payson,  "I  be- 
seech you,  brethren,  paint  Jesus  Christ  upon  your  canvass 
and  then  hold  it  up  for  the  applause  of  your  admiring  world;" 
and  to  feel  with  Bourdaloue,  who,  when  told  by  Louis  XIV 
that  all  the  world  was  moved  by  his  eloquence  and  learning, 
humbly  expressed  the  wish  that  all  the  praise  which  his  elo- 
quence and  learning  evoked  might  be  hung  as  a  garland  on 
the  cross  of  Calvary;  and  to  be  ready  with  one  of  the  conse- 
crated fathers  of  the  early  Christian  church  to  exclaim, 
"Were  the  highest  heaven  my  pulpit  and  the  whole  host  of  the 
redeemed  my  audience,  and  eternity  my  day,  Jesus  alone 
would  be  my  theme."  Well  was  it  so.  The  message  of  the 
pulpit  should  be  characteristically  and  invariably  Christo- 
centric— Christ  the  God,  Christ  the  Man,  Christ  the  God- 
man,  the  dying  Christ,  the  risen  Christ,  the  reigning  Christ; 


DWIGHT  L.  MOODY  AS  A  MAN.  373 

Christ  the  end  of  the  law  to  every  one  that  beUeveth.  Of  all 
the  themes  that  inspire  human  hearts  and  fire  human  lips, 
this  alone  is  sufficient  to  magnify  the  name  of  God,  exalt  the 
Divine  Son,  convict  and  convert  human  souls  and  transform 
a  Paradise  Lost  with  all  its  blight  and  woe  into  a  Paradise 
Regained,  with  all  its  celestial  songs  and  eternal  triumphs; 
and  prompted  by  this  conviction — nay,  held  by  it  as  yon 
planet  is  held  in  its  orbit  by  the  law  of  gravity — each  ambas- 
sador of  Christ  should,  with  his  face  turned  to  his  Master,  lift 
the  prayer 

In  offering  thy  salvation  free 

Let  all  absorbing  thought  of  Thee 
My  mind  and  soul  engross; 

And  when  all  hearts  are  moved  and  stirred 

Beneath  the  influence  of  Thy  word, 
Hide  me  behind  Thy  cross! 
Christ!  Christ!  Not  ethics,  nor  moral  philosophy,  nor 
astronomy,  nor  geology;  nor  history;  nor  political  economy, 
but  Christ  on  Calvary's  summit;  the  centre  of  humanity's 
highest  hopes,  noblest  aspirations  and  divinest  life.  As  Fra 
Angelico,  the  saintly  Italian  painter,  would  never  go  to  his 
palette  and  brush  to  do  work  on  the  figure  of  Jesus  without 
first  partaking  of  the  communion,  so  let  us  brethren  of  the 
ministry,  like  Mr.  Moody,  precede  our  pulpit  duties  by  a 
prayerful  visit  to  Calvary  and  its  cross. 


The  Man  and  His  Message. 

I5y  Rev.  A.  C.  Dixon. 

(A  sermon  delivered  in  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  from  the  text: 
"Mark  the  perfect  man,  and  behold  the  upright,  for  the  end  of 
that  man  is  peace." — Psalm  2>7'-2)7-) 

N  a  magazine  article  several  years  ago  Henry  Drum- 
mond  declared  that  Moody  was  the  greatest  man  this 
century  had  produced,  and  the  closer  one  came  to  him, 
and  the  more  carefully  he  was  studied,  the  firmer  be- 
came the  conviction  that  Drummond  was  right.  First 
of  all,  D.  L.  Moody  was 

AN  HONEST  MAN. 

He  hated  shams.  He  could  not  bear  pretence.  The  first 
question  he  asked  about  everything  was,  "Is  it  right?  Will 
Christ  approve  it?"  He  would  do  nothing  that  he  did  not 
believe  to  be  right  before  God,  and  when  he  decided  that  a 
course  was  right,  the  consciousness  of  its  righteousness 
caused  him  to  throw  all  the  energy  of  his  great  soul  and  vigor- 
ous body  into  it.  And  his  uprightness  caused  him  to  be 
upright  and  downright.     D.  L.  Moody  was 

A  HUMBLE  MAN. 

He  never  boasted  of  his  own  powers.  In  early  life  he  was  in- 
formed that  he  had  nothing  to  boast  of.  When  he  talked  in 
prayer  meetings  his  friends  approached  him  and  urged  him 
to  remain  silent,  for  they  thought  he  had  no  gift  of  public 
speech.  This  early  discouragement  may  have  had  something 
to  do  with  his  self-depreciation,  but  I  think  that  the  secret  of 
his  humility  was  largely  in  the  fact  that  he  always  had  on 
hand  great  enterprises  for  God.  He  was  not  easily  satisfied. 
What  had  been  done  was  only  the  stepping  stone  to  greater 
achievement.     When  a  man  becomes  satisfied  with  what  he 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  MESSAGE.  2,7^ 

has  done  in  life,  he  is  apt  to  grow  proud  of  it.  But  Moody 
always  stood  in  the  presence  of  a  great  unfinished  work.  The 
magnitude  of  it  made  him  look  away  from  himself  to  God.  His 
great  heart  took  in  the  United  States  and  the  world.  He 
prayed  for  a  revival  in  the  nation.  When  he  came  into  a  city, 
its  millions  of  souls  burdened  his  heart.  He  loved  crowds  be- 
cause crowds  gave  him  a  great  opportunity  for  doing  good. 
A  thousand  conversions  filled  him  with  joy,  but  he  could  not 
be  content  with  a  thousand  when  there  were  hundreds  of  thou- 
sands still  unsaved.  Great  preacher  as  he  was,  he  was  never 
satisfied  with  his  sermons,  because  there  was  in  his  mind  an 
ideal  higher  than  anything  he  had  ever  reached.  D.  L.  Moody 
was 
0  A  SPIRITUAL  MAN. 

He  dwelt  in  the  secret  place  of  the  Most  High.  He  was  pow- 
erful in  public  prayer,  but  he  was  most  powerful  when  with  a 
few  friends,  perplexed  and  burdened  about  the  work  on  hand, 
he  would  pour  out  his  heart  in  confession  and  petition.  He 
loved  Keswick  brethren  and  doctrines  because  they  dealt  with 
the  deep  things  of  God.  He  went  to  his  Bible  for  soul  food. 
He  walked  and  talked  with  God.  He  was  a  lover  of  spiritual 
men.  No  word  of  cant  ever  fell  from  his  lips,  but  he  did  de- 
light in  spiritual  conversation.  Dr.  H.  G.  Weston,  in  his  ad- 
dress at  the  funeral  at  Northfield,  said  that  the  secret  of 
Moody's  success  would  be  found  in  the  word  life.  He  was 
truly  alive.  He  had  become  a  partaker  of  the  divine  nature, 
and  this  divine  life  dominated  his  whole  being.  The  pastor 
sjjoke  the  truth  when  he  said,  "To  this  man  the  heavens  were 
always  full  of  chariots  and  horses  of  fire."  He  believed  in 
things  unseen  and  eternal.     D.  L.  Moodv  was 

A  PRACTICAL  MAN. 

It  was  truly  said  of  him,  "he  hitched  his  wagon  to  a  star,"  but 
he  kept  the  wheels  on  earth  and  its  axles  well  oiled.  He  never 
made  the  mistake  of  the  philosopher  who,  while  gazing  at 


2n(i  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

the  stars,  fell  into  the  ditch  at  his  feet.  He  worked  out  his 
own  salvation  with  fear  and  trembling,  while  God  worked  with 
him  to  will  and  to  do.  Enthusiasm  never  ran  away  with  his 
judgment.  There  was  in  him  the  spirit  of  wisdom  as  well  as 
of  revelation.  He  was  noted  for  his  common  sense. 
D.  L.  Moody  was 

A  HOPEFUL  MAN. 

I  never  saw  him  discouraged.  If  he  v/as,  he  never  mentioned 
it.  To  him  better  times  were  always  ahead.  His  face  was  to- 
ward the  sunrise.  He  looked  not  at  the  darkness,  but  the 
stars.  He  gazed  not  on  the  clouds,  but  on  the  rainbow.  His 
hope  was  in  God,  and  there  was  nothing  too  great  for  his  God. 
D.  L.  Moody  was 

A  BRAVE  MAN.  % 

God  said  to  Joshua  while  he  stood  in  the  presence  of  danger, 
"Be  of  good  courage,"  and  the  same  God  said  to  Solomon 
while  he  stood  before  great  difficulties,  "Be  of  good  courage."' 
It  takes  as  great  bravery  to  meet  difficulty  as  danger.  D.  L. 
Moody  would  doubtless  have  been  a  brave  soldier,  going 
wherever  duty  called,  but  he  was  not  called  upon  to  do  this. 
He  did  stand,  however,  frequently  in  the  presence  of  great 
difficulties  and  they  never  made  him  quail.  He  could  stand 
alone  with  God.  He  delighted  in  consultation  with  his 
brethren,  and  had  an  ear  open  to  counsel,  but  his  final  decision 
was  reached  upon  his  knees,  and,  when  he  took  a  stand,  noth- 
ing could  move  him.  His  denunciation  of  sin  in  high  places 
brought  upon  him  severe  criticism,  but  he  did  not  flinch;  he 
simply  repeated  his  charges  with  greater  emphasis.  He  sought 
the  favor  and  the  praise  of  no  man  at  the  expense  of  con- 
science. He  was  popular  with  the  rich  and  the  poor,  because 
in  his  preaching  he  sought  to  please  no  one  but  God. 
D.  L.  Moody  was 

A  GREAT  MAN 
in  the  Christly  sense.     Jesus  said,  "If  any  one  would  be  great 


THE  MAN  AND   HIS  MESSAGE.  377 

among  you,  let  him  become  the  servant  of  all,"  and  the  mis- 
sion of  Moody  was  to  serve.  His  love  of  Jesus  was  a  passion, 
and  he  loved  people  because  Jesus  loved  them.  All  he  was 
and  had  was  on  the  altar  of  sacrifice.  He  never  spared  him- 
self. No  one  who  knew  him  ever  accused  him  of  seeking 
money  for  himself.  He  lived  and  died  a  poor  man,  while  he 
raised  and  passed  on  millions  for  the  uplifting  of  others.  The 
fact  that  he  v/as  without  early  educational  advantages  led  him 
to  sympathize  with  poor  young  men  and  women,  and  to  es- 
tablish colleges  where  they  could  secure  education  at  small 
cost.  A  large  book  may  be  written  on  Moody  as  a  builder. 
There  is  scarcely  a  large  city  in  Christendom  which  has  not 
some  great  building  erected  with  money  raised  in  response  to 
his  prayer  and  work, 

HIS  MESSAGE. 
D.  L.  Moody  was  a  prophet.  He  spoke  for  God.  His 
message  was  the  whole  Bible.  He  believed  it  to  be  the  Word 
of  God.  It  was  easy  for  him  to  accept  its  miracles,  for  the 
God  who  wrote  the  Book  was  equal  to  anything  that  it  claimed 
for  Him.  Like  Spurgeon  he  was  never  ordained  by  the  lay- 
ing on  of  human  hands.  His  ordination  was  of  God.  The 
hand  of  the  Lord  w-as  upon  him.  He  had  no  sympathy  with 
the  critics  who  tear  the  Bible  to  pieces.  There  were  among 
them  some  of  his  friends,  whom  he  loved  in  spite  of  their 
errors.  But  his  friendship  for  them  never  made  him  swerve 
a  particle  from  his  loyalty  to  the  Bible.  He  believed  in  God 
the  Holy  Spirit,  who  inspired  men  to  write  the  Book,  and  who 
is  with  us  ready  to  endue  with  power  in  preaching  it.  Moody 
did  not  despise  other  books,  and  he  read  more  widely  than 
some  people  suppose.  But  all  other  books  compared  with 
The  Book  were  weak  things.  He  was  emphatically  a  man  of 
one  book,  and  because  he  honored  God's  word,  God  honored 
him.     D.  L.  Moody  had 

A  MESSAGE  OF  JUDGMENT. 
He  believed  in  sin  as  a  guilty,  polluting  hell-deserving  thing. 


378  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

He  had  no  confidence  in  the  flesh.  Men  out  of  Christ  were 
lost  for  both  worlds,  lie  preached  little  about  hell,  not  be- 
cause he  did  not  believe  in  it,  but  because  he  believed  that  men 
could  be  saved  from  it  throui^h  preachinji'  the  love  of  ( Jod  in 
Jesus  Christ.  Knowing  the  terror  of  the  soul  he  persuaded 
men. 
D.  L.  Moody  had 

A  MESSAGE  OF  SALVy\T10N  BY  GRACE. 

He  believed  that  sinners  were  saved  by  the  unmerited  favor 
of  God.  He  magnified  mercy.  His  was  a  gospel  of  blood. 
I  heard  him  say  that  he  once  went  to  a  place  in  Great  Britain 
where  he  was  told  by  one  of  the  prominent  preachers  that  it 
would  never  do  for  him  to  say  much  about  blood  in  that  place. 
Moody  told  him  without  hesitation  that  he  would  preach  it 
in  every  sermon,  and  he  magnified  atonement  through  the 
blood  until  the  whole  town  was  s'haken  l)y  the  power  of  God. 
He  frequently  said  that  when  a  ]:)reacher  ceased  to  preach  the 
blood  he  began  to  be  powerless  in  his  ministry.  The  great  ef- 
fort of  his  life  was  to  induce  sinners  to  take  shelter  under  the 
blood.  His  sermons  on  the  blood  have  won  thousands  to 
Jesus.  He  denounced  as  a  fatal  error  the  illusion  that  men 
can  be  saved  by  character  without  the  blood  of  Christ. 
D.  L.  Moody  brought  to  the  world 

A  MESSAGE  OF  REGENERATION. 

He  magnified  the  work  of  the  Spirit  in  the  new  birth.  He  was 
not  a  reformer;  he  thought  little  of  the  efforts  at  reforming 
society  by  program  or  law.  With  him  the  regeneration  of  the 
individual  was  everything.  When  men  are  saved  they  will 
become  good  citizens  and  good  fathers.  He  believed  with  all 
his  heart  in  instantaneous  conversion.  He  declared  that  some- 
where between  the  top  of  that  sycamore  tree  and  the  ground 
Zaccheus  became  a  Christian.  He  emphasized  the  sudden 
conversion  of  the  jailer,  the  eunuch,  the  3,000  on  tlie  day  of 
Pentecost.     Indeed,  he  believed  in  no  other  kind  of  conver- 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  MESSAGE.  379 

sion  than  that  which  comes  suddenly;  that  it  is  not  possible 
to  cultivate  the  old  nature  into  a  state  of  grace;  we  must  re- 
ceive the  divine  nature  by  act  of  faith.  The  proof  of  this  re- 
ception may  come  gradually,  but  every  one  accepts  Jesus  at 
some  definite  time. 
D.  L.  Moody  also  had 

A  MESSAGE  OF  SANCTIFICATION. 

He  did  not  believe  in  sinless  perfection  or  the  eradication  of 
the  old  nature,  but  he  believed  in  the  possibility  of  a  victorious 
life.  In  talking  with  him  one  day  about  a  brother  who  had 
proclaimed  himself  as  sinless,  he  quietly  replied:  "He  will  soon 
tind  out  his  mistake."  He  was  patient  with  people  who  held 
radical  views  about  holiness,  for  he  thought  it  was  better  to 
err  on  that  side  than  on  the  other.  He  had  no  fear  of  being 
perfect,  though  he  was  sorry  that  he  was  imperfect.  There 
was  before  him  a  high  standard  of  Christly  character,  and  al- 
ways conscious  that  he  came  short  of  it  he  strove  every  day 
to  reach  it.  His  great  desire  was  to  be  a  vessel  cleansed  by 
the  Spirit  through  the  Word,  wholly  set  apart  to  the  Master's 
use,  and  he  came  as  near  being  a  thoroughly  sanctified  man  in 
the  New  Testament  sense  as  any  one  I  ever  met. 
D.  L.  Moody  broug'ht  to  the  Church  of  Christ 

A  MESSAGE  OF  EVANGELIS^I. 

His  was  not  a  mystical  religion,  occupied  with  introspection 
and  spiritual  enjoyment.  He  believed  in  a  spirituality  that 
expresses  itself  in  seeking  that  salvation  of  others.  He  had  a 
passion  for  soul  winning.  In  preaching  to  the  unconverted  he 
was  always  at  his  best.  During  the  meeting  in  Grand  Cen- 
tral Palace,  New  New,  it  was  understood  that  the  hall  would 
be  closed  in  the  evening  at  ten  o'clock,  but  bloody  would  be 
found  at  eleven  and  sometimes  twelve  talking  to  some  poor 
burdened  soul  and  striving  to  lead  him  into  the  light  of  sal- 
vation. His  friends  were  then  anxious  about  his  health,  and 
advised  him  to  be  careful,  but,  when  there  was  an  opportunity 


38o  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

for  pointing  a  soul  to  the  Savior,  he  i<ncw  not  how  to  be  care- 
ful. He  believed  in  education,  but  the  consuming  purpose  of 
his  life  was  evangelization.  He  looked  upon  anything  else, 
however  important,  as  incidental.  When  a  church  ceased  to 
seek  and  save  the  lost  he  regarded  it  as  fallen  from  its  high 
mission.  Like  the  Master  he  forgot  the  ninety-nine  that  were 
saved,  and  pressed  after  the  one  who  was  wandering.  Oh, 
that  the  spirit  and  soul  winning  which  inspired  Moody  might 
enter  the  hearts  of  all  the  pastors  and  churches  of  our  land; 
then  would  come  such  a  revival  as  we  have  never  seen  before. 
D.  L.  Moody  brought  to  the  world 

A  MESSAGE  OF  HOPE  IX  THE  SECOND  COMING  OF 

CHRIST. 

He  was  no  fanatic;  he  never  set  the  time.  He  wanted  to  be 
found  watching,  waiting  and  working  when  the  Lord  should 
come.  But  he  had  the  upward  look.  He  fell  into  his  grave 
while  he  was  looking  into  the  heavens  for  the  returning  King. 
It  was  the  inspiration  of  his  life.  He  built  for  time  and  for 
eternity,  but  he  was  willing  that  the  Lord  should  come  and  set 
aside  all  his  plans  in  the  establishment  of  His  Kingdom  upon 
earth.  He  did  not,  however,  disfellowship  brethren  who 
disagreed  with  him  as  to  the  premillenial  return  of  the  Lord. 
If  a  man  was  in  right  relation  to  Christ  on  Cavalry,  and  be- 
lieved the  Bible,  Moody  gave  him  the  hand  of  fellowship, 
whether  he  was  post-milleniahst  or  pre-millenialist.  He  did 
not  believe  these  two  schools  of  thought  should  be  alienated 
because  both  of  them  are  looking  for  the  coming  of  Christ, 
though  they  may  differ  as  to  details. 

D.  L.  Moody  brought  to  the  weary,  burdened  toilers  of 
earth 

A  MESSAGE  OF  HEAVEN. 

He  looked  forward  to  its  rest  and  its  righteousness.  He  cared 
little  for  this  world  because  he  looked  for  "the  city  which  hath 
foundation  whose  builder  and  maker  is  God."     His  citizen- 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  MESSAGE.  381 

ship  was  in  heaven.  He  loved  his  home  and  made  it  a  Httle 
heaven  on  earth.  His  wife  and  childreji  could  hardly  think 
of  him  as  the  great  man  that  he  was,  he  was  so  loving  and  gen- 
tle and  tender.  The  home  on  earth  he  prized,  but  the  home 
in  heaven  he  prized  more.  The  fallacy  so  prevalent  that  we 
should  make  the  best  of  this  world  and  leave  heaven  to  take 
care  of  itself  received  no  sympathy  from  him.  His  real 
world  was  "the  building  of  God,  the  house  not  made  with 
hands  eternal  in  the  heavens."  As  friend  after  friend  passed 
through  the  gates,  he  became  more  attached  to  the  "Father's 
House."  The  death  of  his  little  grandchild  broke  his  heart, 
while  it  brightened  heaven  and  made  him  more  willing  to  go. 

HIS  LAST  WORDS. 

will  be  immortal.  "Earth  is  receding;  heaven  is  opening; 
God  is  calling  me.  Do  not  call  me  back."  What  a  commo- 
tion his  entrance  into  heaven  must  have  made.  While  on 
earth  he  preached  with  his  voice  to  at  least  100,000,000  of  peo- 
ple, and  through  his  pen  to  millions  more.  How  many  mil- 
lions have  been  saved  through  his  life  no  one  can  tell,  but  cer- 
tainly, he  has  received  an  abundant  entrance  into  the  city  of 
life  and  light.  He  has  seen  the  King  in  His  beauty.  The 
yearning  in  his  soul  that  he  might  be  like  Him  has  been  satis- 
fied. I  cannot  think  of  Moody  in  heaven  as  any  other  than  a 
leader  of  men,  a  worker  for  Jesus.  If  there  is  a  campaign  for 
the  glory  of  Christ  he  is  at  the  head  of  it.  In  the  closing 
words  of  Dr.  W>ston's  address,  "I  would  rather  be  D.  L. 
Moody  dead  in  his  cofhn  than  any  other  man  living  on  earth." 


Mr.  Moody's  Impress  on  the  Religious  Life  of 

Scotland. 

By  John  McMurtrie,  D.D.,  of  Edinburgh,  Scotland. 

HE  writer  is  one  of  the  lessening  band  of  ministers 
who  had  the  privilege  of  helping  and  being  helped 
by  Mr.  Moody  on  his  first  campaign  in  Scot- 
land, in  1873  and  1874.  He  claims  no  special 
acquaintance  with  the  present  state  of  the 
church  beyond  what  may  be  due  to  the  fact  that  his  duties  lead 
him  to  visit  congregations  and  be  the  friend  of  ministers  in 
many  parts  of  Scotland.  His  experience  in  recent  years  is 
almost  limited  to  the  Church  of  Scotland,  the  established  and 
largest  church  of  the  country.  This  latter  consideration  is 
not  so  disc|ualifying  as  might  be  supposed.  A  late  Moderator 
of  the  General  Assembly,  Dr.  Archibald  Watson,  of  Dundee, 
used  to  say  that  our  Scottish  churches  are  not  so  many  lakes 
shut  ofT  from  each  other,  but  inlets  of  the  same  sea.  so  that 
when  the  tide  rises  in  one  it  rises  in  them  all.  He  was  think- 
ing mainly  of  currents  of  religious  opinion;  but  it  is  equally 
true  of  spiritual  impulse  and  modes  of  worship,  and  methods 
of  work. 

Mr.  Moody  came  at  a  fit  time,  when  God  had  prepared  the 
way — for  many  ministers  had  observed  among  their  people 
an  increase  of  interest  in  religion.  The  blessing  came  im- 
mediately, and  more  fully  month  by  month,  and  it  was  so  far 
from  stop])ing  when  Mr.  Moody  and  his  honored  co-evangel- 
ist, Mr.  Sankey,  departed,  that  the  best  of  the  work  was  then 
seen  in  the  congregations  of  those  ministers  who  sympathized 
with  and  guided  the  movement.  Tn  the  following  year  a  com- 
mittee of  the  Church  of  .Scotland  authorized  by  the  General 
Assembly  to  make  careful  inquiry,  reported  thus; 


MOODY'S  IMPRESS  ON  SCOTLAND.  383 

"It  is  no  matter  of  theory,  l)ut  a  simple  fact,  that  the  Lord 
sent  forth  His  Word  witli  demonstration  of  the  Spirit  and  with 
power,  and  that  individuals,  families  and  whole  congregations 
are  every  day  blessing  Him  for  the  light  of  the  new  life.  It 
will  be  seen  that  in  those  cases  the  ordinary  services  of  the 
church  and  the  ministers  of  the  gospel  are  more  highly  prized 
and  more  distinctly  serviceable  for  the  edifying  of  the  body 
of  Christ  than  they  were  before." 

A  parish  minister  enumerates  results,  two  of  which  may  be 
quoted : — 

(i.)  "A  large  increase  in  the  number  of  young  men  who 
come  to  the  Bible  classes  or  join  the  fellowship  association, 
and  there  being  now  no  difficulty  in  getting  well-qualified 
young  men  to  be  Sabbath  school  teachers. 

(2.)  "Remarkable  stedfastness  on  the  part  of  those  who  ap- 
peared to  be  the  subjects  of  special  religious  experience.  I 
know  of  only  one  case  of  decided  falling  away,  and  I  am  not 
without  hope  even  in  regard  to  that  case.  With  regard  to  not 
a  few  who  are  well  known  to  me,  I  am  able  to  testify  not  only 
that  they  are  far  happier  than  before,  but  that  the  change  for 
the  better  which  has  come  over  their  lives  commends  itself  to 
all  around  them." 

'  FIVE  YEARS  AFTER  THE  CAMPAIGN 

a  testimony  of  another  kind  comes  before  us.  Dr.  Marshall 
Lang,  of  Glasgow,  well  known  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic, 
writes  in  the  "Catholic  Presbyterian"  for  February,  1879: 

"The  authorities  in  Glasgow  have  repeatedly  acknowledged 
the  social  good  accomplished  by  labors  originated  by  the 
evangelistic  work  in  1874,  and  still  carried  on  with  vigor." 
And  he  makes  his  meaning  plain,  and  shows  at  the  same  time 
that  this  is  a  result  to  be  expected  from  a  genuine  revival,  ])y 
quoting  the  address  of  an  Irish  county  judge  to  a  grand  jury 
in  the  autumn  of  1859.  That  judge  was.  of  course,  referring 
not  to  Mr.  Moody's  work,  but  to  the  earlier  Irish  revival.  He 


384  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

said:  "I  am  greatly  struck  at  the  appearance  of  this  calendar, 
so  small  is  the  number  of  cases,  when  I  formerly  had  calen- 
dars filled  with  charges  for  different  nefarious  practices.  How 
is  such  a  gratifying  state  of  matters  to  be  accounted  for?  It 
must  be  from  the  improved  moraUty  of  the  people.  I  believe 
I  am  fully  warranted  now  to  say  that  to  nothing  else  than  the 
moral  and  religious  movement  which  commenced  early  last 
summer  can  the  change  be  attributed." 
Mr.  Moody  has  left 

HIS  MARK  ON  SCOTTISH  PREACHING. 

His  way  stood  out  in  bold  contrast  to  the  common  faults  that 
make  preaching  of  no  effect.  What  are  the  faults  that  he  has 
done  something  to  amend? 

There  is  'the  preaching  that  has  no  gospel  in  it.  The 
preacher  has  no  message  worth  tlie  trouble  of  deUvery,  and 
because  he  has  nothing  to  do  good  to  any  soul,  one  wonders 
why  the  man  ever  desired  to  be  a  preacher,  having  so  little  to 
say.  Alas!  the  race  is  not  extinct.  But  find  anywhere  in 
Scotland  a  congregation  on  which  manifestly  rests  the  power 
of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  there  you  will  find  a  minister  who 
seems  to  cry  with  St.  Paul,  "Woe  is  unto  me  if  I  preach  not  the 
gospel."     Mr.  Moody  had  something  to  do  with  this. 

A  higher  class  came  about  him  a  good  deal — good  men  in 
doubt  about  many  things,  and  too  honest  to  preach  what  was 
not  true  to  them.  They  soon  found  that  they  could  not  guide 
an  anxious  soul,  in  fact  they  were  afraid  to  try.  Not  a  few  such 
men  got  down  to  the  bed-rock  of  faith  and  have  since  been 
tenfold  more  useful. 

Very  many  sermons  are  ruined  by  the  preacher's  habit  of 
discoursing  about  religous  matters,  but  not  speaking  to  the 
people.  This  Mr.  Moody  never  did.  He  went  straight  for 
his  hearers  every  time.  In  this  regard  there  has  been  a  dis- 
tinct improvement,  to  w^hich,  no  doubt,  various  causes  con- 
tributed— but  Mr.  Moody's  example  was  contagious. 


MOODY'S  IMPRESS  ON  SCOTLAND.  385 

One  thing  he  helped  ahnost  to  aboHsh  was  the  wearisome 
introduction  to  sermons.  Many  more  preachers  now  say  at 
once  what  they  have  got  to  say,  while  their  hearers  are  fresh 
and  have  not  ceased  to  be  expectant. 

Mr.  Moody's  teaching  was  intensely  scriptural,  and  I  do 
not  think  we  have  made  progress  in  that  respect. 

THE  BIBLE  WAS  HIS  WEAPON. 

He  knew  it,  loved  it,  and  would  trust  no  other.  His  exposi- 
tion might  sometimes  show  the  absence  of  a  scholar's  train- 
ing, but  it  was  immensely  better  than  what  I  have  heard  from 
university  men,  who  simply  gathered  fine  thoughts  around  a 
text,  without  the  slightest  elTort  to  tell  the  people  what  the 
writer  of  that  sentence  meant  to  say.  His  Bible  readings  were 
much  blest  and  were  imitated  by  many.  But  of  late  I  do  not 
hear  of  such  attempts,  and  my  impression  is  that  there  is  de- 
cidedly less  expository  preaching  in  Scotland  now  than  a 
quarter  of  a  century  ago.     And  this  is  regrettable. 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that 

MR.  SANKEY'S  INNOCENT  AMERICAN  ORGAN. 

did  more  than  anything  else  to  popularize  instrumental  music 
in  our  Scottish  churches.  The  organ  was  associated  in 
Scotland  with  Anglicanism  and  ritualism,  but  Mr.  Sankey's 
music  conciliated  the  good  people,  who  resigned  themselves — 
with  a  sigh,  if  they  were  elderly  folk — to  enjoy  and  be  helped 
by  the  organ.  This  recalls  a  curious  controversy,  to  be  found 
in  two  pamphlets  which  a  bookseller's  catalogue  lately  de- 
scribed as  rare.  They  are  before  me  now.  The  first  is  by 
Dr.  Kennedy,  of  Dingwall,  stern  and  saintly  representative  of 
the  men  of  Ross,  and  is  an  attack  on  Moody's  doctrine  and 
Sankey's  organ.  It  is  painful  reading,  an  unjust  and  indeed 
ignorant  assault.  The  other  is  Dr.  Horatius  Bonar's  reply, 
and  is  simply  crushing,  so  far  as  Mr.  Moody  is  concerned.  But 
when  he  comes  to  the  organ  he  only  says:  *T  do  not  desire  it, 
and  I  see  no  advantage  in  it.     But  after  all  it  was  a  mere  ap- 

2.S 


386  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

pendage  to  the  proceedings  and  a  very  small  one.  Its  pres- 
ence surely  could  not  vitiate  the  whole  work.  We  have  not 
introduced  it  into  our  church  services."  Beloved  Dr.  Bonar! 
His  own  people  did  not  even  sing-  hymns.  His  own  beautiful 
hymns  are  dear  to  the  English-speaking  race  throughout  the 
world,  but  I  believe  he  never  heard  them  sung  in  his  own 
church. 

In  the  Church  of  Scotland  a  movement  for  the  quickening 
of  spiritual  life  and  the  better  organization  of  Christian  work 
had  begun  some  years  before  this  time.  The  workers  felt  the 
stimulus  of  the  revival.  The  first  report  of  the  Christian  Life 
and  work  Committee  was  presented  to  the  General  Assembly 
in  1870  by  Dr.  Charteris.  At  the  present  day  that  Committee 
reports  60,000  Guild  members,  an  order  of  deaconesses  in 
vigorous  working,  with  training  home  and  hospital,  a  maga- 
zine with  a  circulation  of  109,000  monthly,  and  a  large  increase 
in  evangelistic  missions  and  mission  preachers  at  home. 
Under  another  committee  foreign  missions  have  rapidly 
grown;  and  I  take  it  that  the  Church  of  Scotland  illustrates 
the  progress  which  has  been  made  in  other  churches  also. 

One  of  the  happiest  features  of  Mr.  Moody's  work  was  too 
short  lived,  through  no  fault  of  the  evangelist.    The  various 

CHURCHES  WERE  DRAWN  TOGETHER, 
as  if  they  might  agree  to  forget  the  things  that  divide  them. 
The  present  writer  remembers  reckoning  that  he  had  taken 
part  in  the  special  services  of  about  forty  congregations  of 
the  non-established  churches  in  Edinburgh  and  the  neighbor- 
hood; and  in  his  own  district  of  the  city  the  ministers  and  con- 
gregations of  four  denominations  were  in  the  habit  of  meet- 
ing by  turns  in  each  others'  churches.  An  attempt  to  dises- 
tablish and  despoil  the  national  church  was  a  sorrowful  inter- 
ruption. The  question  cannot  be  discussed  here.  Let  it  suf- 
fice to  say  that  if  public  co-operation  became  difficult,  and 
sometimes  impossible,  in  many  cases  the  old  brothcrlincss  has 
never  departed  from  the  intercourse  of  private  life. 


A  Tribute  From  Glasgow. 

By  Rev.  John  McNeill. 

(Delivered  in  St.  Andrews  Hall,  Glasgow,  on  the  Sabbath  following 
Mr.  Moody's  death.) 

E  are  met  to-night  under  the  shadow  of  a  great 
loss.  God  has  taken  home  to  Himself  our  be- 
loved brother,  Mr.  Moody.  The  great  evan- 
gelist's death  has  created  a  profound  impression 
on  all  our  hearts,  and  I  received  the  news  with 
a  shock  that  comes  of  a  personal  loss.  The  moment  I  read  it 
in  the  newspaper  the  words  leapt  to  my  mouth,  "My  Father, 
my  Father,  the  chariot  of  Israel  and  the  horsemen  thereof." 
We  feel,  I  feel,  as  if  the  Wellington  of  the  Evangelistic  Army 
had  been  taken  from  our  head.  When  one  begins  to  speak 
about  Mr.  Moody,  one  hardly  knows  where  to  strike  in,  and 
once  he  has  broken  in  he  does  not  know  where  to  stop.  On 
all  sides  of  him  he  was  a  great  man;  he  was  a  great  man  in  all 
his  measurements.     He  was 

GREAT  AS  A  PREACHER. 

I  have  sometimes  heard  people  say  that  they  could  not 
account  for  his  success,  because  they  did  not  see  wherein  he 
differed  from  other  men  as  a  preacher.  I  could  not  subscribe 
to  that  opinion.  To  me  D.  L.  Moody  was  an  immensely  in- 
teresting preacher.  He  was  no  end  of  a  preacher  in  resource- 
fulness, in  what  you  might  call  tactics;  that  is,  he  always  kept 
his  audience  at  his  finger  ends,  and  yet  was  ever  pressing 
with  all  his  force  for  the  one  great  mark  to  capture  them  for 
a  waiting  present  Savior. 

I  think  he  was  not  merely  a  preacher;  he  was  an  eloquent 
preacher.  I  did  not  hear  him  during  his  first  visit  to  this 
country,  when  he  and  Mr.  Sankey  burst  upon  Scotland  and 


388  D WIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

carried  it  captive;  and  they  have  held  it  in  their  grip  ever 
since.  It  was  at  Mr.  Moody's  second  visit  that  I  heard  him, 
and  yet  some  folks  observed  to  me,  'You  should  have  heard 
him  during  his  first  visit.  Then  you  would  have  heard  him 
at  his  best.'  Well,  I  do  not  know  what  his  best  must  have 
been.  I  remember  hearing  him  when  I  was  a  student,  a  city 
missionary.  It  was  in  this  very  hall  on  a  week-day  afternoon 
that  I  sat  to  the  left  there.  That  plain,  simple  American  rose 
up,  there  being  nothing  about  him  that  suggested  oratory  in 
the  academic  sense;  ah,  but  I  shall  never  forget  that  first  ad- 
dress of  his.     It  was  about  Paul.     Paul's  motto  was — 

'ONE  THING  I  DO.' 

How  he  made  Paul  live  before  us!  With  what  consummate 
skill  he  ran  through  Paul's  history!  He  brought  in  Paul's 
persecutions,  pointed  to  the  time  when  they  stoned  him  and 
left  him  for  dead;  and  after  they  thought  that  they  had 
wreaked  their  worst  upon  him,  Paul  recovered  and  pulled  him- 
self together.  His  friends  came  round  him  and  said:  'Now, 
Paul,  you'll  have  some  sense;  you'll  give  up  preaching  whilst 
these  fierce  Jews  are  abroad.'  And  then  he  brought  in  with 
tremendous  effect  his  great  text — 'This  one  thing  I  do !  Show 
me  t'he  road  to  the  next  town;  I  must  preach  Jesus  Christ  and 
Him  crucified.'  The  thrilling  effect  on  one  hearer  of  that  ser- 
mon can  never  be  forgotten. 

Oh!  Moody  was  a  great  preacher.  Although  he  was  un- 
trained, uneducated  in  our  professional,  theological,  academic 
sense,  in  another  sense  he  was  educated.  He  was  well  de- 
scribed in  that  picture  of  the  Apostles  Peter  and  John.  We 
are  told  that  when  the  people  saw  they  were  unlearned  and 
ignorant  in  the  academical  sense,  they  took  knowledge  of 
them  that  they  had  been  with  Jesus.  But  if  the  mark  of  great 
preaching  be  great  success  and  gathering  of  great  crowds, 
and  bringing  men  to  an  intelligent  decision  for  Christ,  then 
Moody  was  one  of  the  greatest  preachers  who  ever  lived.  Then 


A  TRIBUTE    FROM    GLASGOW.  389 

HE  WAS  A  GREAT  ORGANIZER. 

If  he  had  never  become  a  preacher  he  would  have  been  at  the 
head  of  some  of  those  tremendous  businesses  in  the  United 
States,  the  facts  and  figures  of  which  we  read  over  here  with 
wonder  and  ahnost  increduHty.  You  remember  that  he  was  a 
clerk  in  a  boot  and  shoe  store  when  he  was  converted.  He 
started  to  preach,  and  by  and  by  he  gave  up  his  worldly  em- 
ployment and  took  to  preaching.  If  Moody  had  stuck  to  sell- 
ing boots  and  shoes,  he  would,  at  length,  have  been  at  the 
head  of  some  gigantic  boot  and  shoe  combine  that  would  have 
dominated  the  trade  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic.  He  was  a 
tremendous  organizer,  a  man  of  restless  activity,  a  man  of 
tremendous  brain  power,  and  of  great  insight  and  foresight. 

Mr.  Moody  was  a  great  man  every  way  you  took  him,  and 
if  Jesus  Christ  had  not  captured  him,  and  claimed  him,  and 
used  him  for  his  service,  he  would  have  been  great  in  the 
world's  work.  And  then  as  a  man,  how  unique,  how  true, 
how  thorough!  I  admired  his  genius  and  power  in  organiz- 
ing. He  also  honored  me  with  his  friendship.  I  mourn  his 
loss.     It  was  impossible  to  know  him  and  not  to  love  him. 

HE  WAS  A  HOLY  MAN,  A  GODLY  MAN, 

a  saintly  man.  And  when  you  think  of  Moody's  saintliness, 
it  did  not  suggest  a  recluse  or  a  man  who  lives  far  from  the 
madding  crowds'  ignoble  strife.  Oh!  how  human  he  was! 
When  his  life  is  written,  I  hope  those  who  undertake  the  task 
will  give  us  the  man  Moody  as  he  was.  I  hope  they  will  give 
a  faithful  delineation  of  him  in  the  human  sense,  how  he  lived 
a  hearty  life.  I  have  seen  him  roll  on  his  couch  with  laughter 
in  the  fair  happiness  and  gleefulness  of  body  and  soul  when  a 
good  story  would  be  told  during  that  memorable  campaign  at 
the  World's  Fair  in  Chicago. 

I  said  that  no  man  was  more  saintly,  more  devoted,  no  man 
had  a  greater  passion  for  doing  'his  work  well  than  he.  How 
human  he  was  in  the  human  side!     Even  through  my  tears 


390  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

I  smile  as  I  recollect  him  as  a  man,  as  playful  to  his  latest  day 
as  a  boy.  Get  Moody  amongst  children,  and  he  was  the  big- 
gest romp  in  the  crowd.  An  hour  later  that  man  was  a  flam- 
ing herald  of  the  Cross,  hfted  up  for  Jesus  Christ  in  the  midst 
of  ten  thousand  people. 

He  is  gone!  One  thinks  of  him  entering  heaven.  One 
thinks  of  the  multitudes  who  would  be  there  to  meet  him,  and 
of  the  multitudes  who  are  to  follow  after  him.  I  feel  weaker; 
all  of  us  on  the  evangelistic  field  feel  weaker.  Scotland  to- 
day feels  somewhat  emptier.  He  bulked  so  large,  he  was  so 
mighty  for  Christ.  Alas!  he  is  gone!  May  the  Lord  bring 
a  great  blessing  to  us  out  of  this  removal  of  his  servant!  May 
we  creep  closer  to  the  Lord  Himself;  may  we  cry  more  might- 
ily unto  Him. 

We  thank  God  that  we  were  privileged  to  know  and  work 
with  D.  L.  Moody.  His  labors  are  over.  What  can  one  say? 
His  end,  I  should  think,  was  just  as  he  would  have  wished  it. 
He  had  gone  to  Kansas  City,  where  he  had  spoken  in  a  hall 
to  twelve  thousand  people.  Suddenly  his  strength  gave  way; 
his  call  had  come,  but  God  in  his  mercy  gave  him  time  to  go 
home  and  to  have  all  his  family  gathered  quietly  about  him; 
and  then  his  sun  set  for  this  world  to  rise  in  the  next. 

He  sets  as  sets  the  morning  star 
That  goes  not  down  behind  the  darkened  west. 
Nor  hides  obscured  amidst  the  tempest  of  the  sky, 
But  melts  away  into  the  light  of  heaven. 
Servant  of  God,  well  done; 
Praise  be  thy  new  employ, 
*  And  while  eternal  ages  run, 

Rest  in  thy  Master's  joy. 


A  Tribute  From  London. 

By  Rev.  F.  B.  Meyer. 

(In  The  Christian,  London.) 

O  liave  known  D.  L.  Moody,  and  come  within  the 

range  of  his  strong  personahty,  has  been  to  many 

men  one  of  the  most  influential  factors  in  their 

character  and  Hfe-work;  and  it  is  not  easy  for  such 

to  imagine  a  world  from  which  the  inspiration  of 

his  presence  has  been  withdrawn.     It  is  still  less  easy,  under 

the  immediate  sorrow  of  such  bereavement,  to  characterize 

this  natural  prince  and  leader  of  men. 

He  had  a  marvelous  power  over  others.  You  cannot  read 
the  biographies  of  Dr.  Andrew  Bonar,  of  Dr.  A.  J.  Gordon,  of 
Professor  Drummond,  or  of  Dr.  Dale,  men  as  far  as  possible 
removed  from  each  other  in  many  respects,  without  encoun- 
tering the  same  tribute  to  the  spell  which  this 

STRONG,  TENDER,  INTENSE 

nature  exerted  over  them.  There  was  something  magnetic 
about  him.  Whoever  was  speaking  at  the  Northfield  Con- 
vention, it  w^as  the  fact  that  Moody  was  present — though  only 
as  a  listener,  sitting,  probably,  off  the  platform,  under  the  deep 
gallery  on  the  right —  which  gave  the  session  importance,  and 
the  speaker's  words  weight.  Even  when  men  have  not  agreed 
with  him,  and  have  seriously  antagonized  his  positions,  they 
have  acknowledged  the  absolute  sincerity  and  nobility  of  his 
character. 

I  met  him  first  in  York  in  1873,  on  his  arrival  with  Mrs. 
Moody  and  his  two  eldest  children.  Accompanied  by  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Sankey,  they  had  come  to  our  country,  as  it  ap- 
peared, by  a  divine  prompting,  and  had  just  landed  at  Liver- 
pool,    Some  time  before,  the  secretary  of  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  had 


392  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

impressed  on  him  the  two  words,  "Bennett,  York;"  and  not 
knowing-  where  else  to  turn,  two  X)i  his  friends  having  sud- 
denly died,  Moody  telegraphed  to  Mr.  Bennett,  saying,  "I  will 
be  in  York  to-night."  This  was  Saturday.  On  the  following 
day  he  preached  at  the  chapel,  built  for  Rev.  James  Parsons, 
and  then  occupied  by  Rev.  John  Hunter  (now  of  Glasgow). 
During  the  following  week  he  held  evening  services  in  the  old 
Lendal  Chapel,  and  noon  prayer  meetings  at  the  Y.  M.  C.  A. 
After  two  or  three  more  days  with  the  Wesleyans,  he  came  to 
the  Baptist  Chapel,  of  which  I  was  minister,  and  conducted 
meetings  there  for  about  a  fortnight,  with  ever-increasing 
numbers  and  marvelous  results.  He  and  Mr.  Sankey  have 
often  spoken  of  that  little  vestry,  where  we  three  spent  much 
time  in  prayer,  little  weening  that  the  earnestness  of  our  de- 
sires and  intercessions  were  the  travail  pangs  of  so  great  a 
spiritual  movement  as  followed. 

These  were  the  days  when  the  "Sacred  Songs  and  Solos" 
had  not  been  compiled,  and  we  used  a  number  of  fly-sheets 
with  paper  covers.  But  the  main  lines  of  Moody's  character 
and  work  were  already  laid.  He  said  to  me  once,  alluding  to 
academic  degrees,  "I  want  to  be  D.  L.  Moody,  O.  O."  And 
on  my  asking  him  what  the  letters  stood  for,  he  said:  "Why, 
of  course,  Out-and-Out." 

He  liked  nothing  better  tihan  to  get  a  Bible  student  alone, 
and  ply  him  with  questions  as  to  what  he  knew  of  the  Bible, 
or  any  fresh  light  he  had  recently  received.  He  was  always 
collecting  incidents,  illustrations,  witty  and  wise  sayings, 
which  he  placed  in  large  envelopes,  on  which  were  written 

THE  KEY- WORDS  OF  ADDRESSES 

in  course  of  preparation.  He  was  not  so  familiar  with  his  ad- 
dresses as  he  became  afterwards,  for  one  afternoon,  having 
come  in  to  tea,  he  hastened  away  suddenly  to  cross  to  the 
other  side  of  York,  to  the  house  of  Dr.  Kitchen,  with  whom 
he  was  staying,  to  get  the  notes  of  his  address  on  "Heaven." 


A  TRIBUTE  FROM  LONDON.  393 

The  first  all-day  meeting  he  held  in  England  was  arranged 
by  us  as  we  walked  up  and  down  Coney  Street,  and  it  was  at 
my  instance  that  the  evangelists  went  on  to  Rev.  A.  A.  Recs, 
at  Sunderland,  who  first  coined  the  announcement,  which  be- 
came so  widely  known,  and,  indeed,  carried  Scotland,  not- 
withstanding the  prejudice  against  the  solo  singer,  and  his 
"kist  o'  whistles,"  that  "Mr.  Moody  would  speak,  and  Mr. 
Sankey  sing,  the  gospel." 

This  was,  of  course,  not  his  first  introduction  to  Great  Brit- 
ain, or  to  wide  and  extended  work.  He  had  first  made  his 
mark  in  Chicago,  in  an  old  shanty  lighted  by  tallow  candles, 
which  had  been  abandoned  by  a  saloon  keeper,  though  his  own 
education  was  then  so  imperfect  that  he  is  said  to  have  been  . 
obliged  to  skip  some  of  the  longer  words  as  he  read  the  Bible 
to  the  children.  His  brushes  with  the  saloon-keepers;  his 
efforts  for  all  outcast  and  neglected  souls;  his  indefatigable 
labors  in  connection  with  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  at  Farwell  Hall; 
his  herculean  exertions  for  the  soldiers  in  camp  and  on  the 
field  of  battle,  as  a  delegate  of  the  Christian  Commission  dur- 
ing the  Civil  War;  his  journeyings  in  all  parts  for  Sunday 
school  conventions,  had  given  him  an  amount  of  experience, 
and  created  a  wealth  of  resource,  which  were  only  waiting  for 
the  open  sphere  and  conspicuous  platform  that  opened  before 
his  labors  in  England. 

His  two  previous  visits  to  our  country  had  been  for  the  pur- 
pose of  observation,  and  of  coming  in  contact  with  leading 
Christian  men.  He  always  spoke  with  gratitude  of  the  im- 
pulse he  had  received  in  the  direction  of  Bible  study  from  a 
Mildmay  Conference,  and  described  as  one  of  the  most  im- 
portant seed-germs  of  his  career  a  sentence  which  he  over- 
heard from  the  lips  of  an  eminent  servant  of  God,  in  the  course 
of  a  conversation  with  a  friend:  "The  world  has  yet  to  learn 
what  God  can  do  by  a  man  wdiolly  devoted  to  Him." 

All  who  have  heard  him  will  recall  the  quiver  in  his  voice 
when  he  told  some  pathetic  story;  but  I  never  guessed  the  in- 


394  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

tensity  of  his  tenderness  till  I  saw  him  with  his  grandchildren. 
He  used  to  drive  them  about  in  his  carriage,  or  carry  them  in 
his  arms.  One  of  the  most  striking  incidents  in  my  memory 
was  when  he  stood  with  them  beside  his  mother's  grave,  in  a 
summer  sunset,  and  asked  us  to  pray  that  they  might  be  in  the 
coming  century  what  she  had  been  in  this.  And  when  little 
Irene  was  dying,  he  used  to  be  on  the  watch  below  her  window 
to  keep  all  quiet,  would  steal  down  from  the  meetings  to  hear 
the  latest  news,  would  be  the  nurse  and  playmate  of  her  little 
cousin,  that  all  might  devote  themselves  to  the  chamber  of 
sickness.  So  touched,  because  a  little  child  had  sent  the  in- 
valid a  pet  lamb!  How  moved  he  was  as  we  saw  it  together! 
He  was  absolutely  fearless.  I  remember  one  occasion 
when  he  felt  it  laid  on  his  heart  to  speak  some  unpalatable 
truths  to  a  number  of  ministers  and  others.  Before  me,  as  I 
write,  is  the  large  circle  that  sat  around  his  spacious  dining- 
room  in  the  summer  evening,  the  monument  of  ice-cream 
which  he  carved  with  such  precision;  and  then  the 

DIRECT  UNVARNISHED  WORDS, 

which  wounded  deeply,  that  a  better  condition  of  soul-life 
might  be  induced.  Whether  in  a  crowd,  or  with  an  individual, 
he  never  swerved  a  hair's-breadth  from  what  he  thought  right, 
to  win  a  smile,  or  avoid  a  frown. 

As  a  conversationalist  he  was  charming.  He  would  sit  in 
the  porch  of  his  unpretending  but  comfortable  house,  over- 
looking the  lovely  landscape,  telling  story  after  story  of  mar- 
velous conversions.  One  day,  for  instance,  a  young  man 
drove  up  as  we  were  talking,  and  he  told  me  that  he  had  won 
him  to  Christ  when  quite  a  lad  by  a  conversation  on  the  roof 
of  a  Chicago  hotel,  that  being  the  only  quiet  spot  he  could  find 
for  his  purpose.  Or  he  would  recall  reminiscences  of  men 
whom  he  had  known.  He  had  a  great  fund  of  information 
about  agriculture;  had  traveled  widely  and  observed  shrewdly; 
was  in  keen  and  close  touch  with  the  great  religious  move- 


A  TRIBUTE  FROM  LONDON.  395 

ments  of  the  time;  and  was  specially  fond  of  asking  questions 
of  anyone  who  seemed  hkely  to  communicate  rehable  infor- 
mation. He  was  always  hungry  for  facts.  The  most  extra- 
ordinary contrasts  met  in  his  nature.     His  external 

APPEARANCE  WAS  ROUGH, 

and  his  manners  brusque;  but  he  had  one  of  the  tenderest 
hearts  that  beat.  His  scorn  and  hatred  of  anything  wrong 
and  mean  were  withering;  his  pity  for  the  erring,  unlimited. 
Having  been  debarred  from  the  benefits  of  early  education, 
yet — in  his  magnificent  institution  at  Northfield,  where  700 
young  men  and  women  are  always  under  training,  and  in  the 
great  Bible  Institute  at  Chicago — he  has  probably  done  more 
in  the  cause  of  learning  than  any  other  single  man  in  America. 
Unable  to  sing  a  note,  he  has  promoted  a  college  of  sacred 
singers.  Outside  the  ministerial  ranks — and  yet  he  spent  his 
life  to  help  ministers  and  churches  to  do  their  work  more  effi- 
ciently. He  was  absolutely  loyal  to  church  organization,  al- 
ways making  it  his  aim  to  vitalize  and  quicken  church  life,  and 
increase  the  efficiency  of  existing  institutions. 

Toward  the  end  of  lis  life  he  was  greatly  impressed  by  the 
movment  for  the  promotion  of  a  deeper  spiritual  life.  I  in- 
duced him  to  come  to  Keswick,  which  he  greatly  enjoyed,  and 
he  wrote  to  me  saying,  "I  am  going  to  do  all  I  can  to  get  the 
Christians  to 

TAKE  A  HIGHER  STAND, 

and  to  get  them  together."  Of  course,  he  was  well  aware  of 
the  perils  attending  all  such  movements,  but  he  was  more  than 
ever  persuaded  that  nothing  but  a  quickened  spiritual  life 
would  meet  the  requirements  of  the  American  church  at  this 
juncture;  and  nothing  that  I  can  remember  filled  him  with 
greater  glee  than  when,  last  August,  two-thirds  of  the  New 
York  Presbytery  spent  ten  days  at  Northfield  for  the  purpose 
of  investigating  and  receiving  teaching  concerning  the  deep- 
est phases  in  the  soul's  development. 


396  DWIGHT  L.  MOODV. 

H  died  triumphantly,  we  learn,  conscious  to  the  last,  and 
bearing  testimony  to  the  gospel  he  had  preached.  1  he  groat 
institutions  which  he  created  and  fostered;  the  colportage 
work;  the  colleges  at  Chicago,  and  Northfield,  and  Mount 
Hermon;  his  books — these  will  be  the  works  that  will  follow 
-  him.  He  discovered  men,  knew  how  to  bring  the  best  quali- 
ties out  of  them,  found  them  spheres,  and  gave  them  back  to 
themselves.  Men  like  Mr.  Mott  and  Mr.  Speer,  of  the  Student 
Volunteers;  like  Mr.  Baer,  of  the  Christian  Endeavor;  like 
Dr.  Wilbur  Chapman,  the  well-known  evangelist;  to  say  noth- 
ing of  hundreds  besides,  who  have  passed  through  his  colleges 
or  been  influenced  by  his  missions,  will  perpetuate  in  the  com- 
ing generation  something  of  the  influence  and  power  he 
wielded  in  this, 

THROUGH  THE  GRACE  OF  GOD. 

He  never  wavered  in  his  attachment  to  the  great  fundamen- 
tals of  the  gospel.  His  sermons  on  the  Blood,  the  Holy  Spir- 
it, the  Love  of  God  in  Jesus  Christ,  were  great  testimonies  to 
the  mighty  truths  which  have  been  the  theme  of  every  revival 
of  evangelical  religion.  There  was  no  uncertain  sound  in  the 
gospel  as  he  preached  it,  and  it  was  the  Power  of  God  unto 
salvation  to  tens  of  thousands. 

What  a  welcome  he  must  have  received  as  he  entered 
heaven!  Surely  an  abundant,  a  choral,  entrance  must  have 
been  ministered  unto  him  by  myriads  who  are  there,  because 
of  the  message  uttered  in  burning  accents  by  his  lips.  May 
God  comfort  his  noble  wife,  the  confidant  of  his  secrets,  the 
partner  of  his  anxieties  and  toils;  and  grant  that  his  children 
may  be  enabled  to  maintain  the  work  which  he  has  left  them  as 
a  sacred  legacy  and  charge. 


A  Tribute  From  the  South. 

By  Rev.  Wm.  E.  Hatcher,  D.D. 
(In  the  Religious  Herald,  Richmond,  Va.) 
HE  passing  of  Dwight  L.  Moody  is  a  serious  event 
in  the  Christian  world.  It  withdraws  from  our 
evangeUcal  forces  their  most  conspicuous  leader. 
Mr.  Moody  was  the  Christian  commoner  of  the 
present  generation,  a  true  cosmopolitan,  the 
founder  of  the  new  school  of  evangelism.  Untrained  in  the 
schools,  he  was  yet  the  prince  and  counsellor  in  the 
brotherhood  of  scholars.  In  his  sphere  he  was  simply 
incomparable.  He  stood  for  years  as  the  central  figure  and 
almost  the  final  authority  in  the  evangelical  movements  of  the 
day.  He  created  a  new  literature,  new  music,  new  methods 
and  a  new  order  of  preaching.  As  a  result  of  his  inspiring 
influence,  thousands  of  ministers  caught  the  evangeHstic  spir- 
it and  devoted  themselves  to  the  work  of  the  evangelist,  and 
that  too,  with  gracious  and  far-reaching  results.  Nor  is  it 
less  significant  that  in  his  wake  there  sprang  a  horde  of  spur- 
ious evangelists,  who,  dazzled  by  his  achievements,  stole  his 
methods,  and  sought  to  atone  for  their  lack  of  attractiveness 
by  a  resort  to  invective  bufifoonery  and  vulgarity,  and  in  not 
a  few  cases  rallied  crowds  and  published  reports  that  almost 
eclipsed  him.  THe  false  apostles  of  Moody  were  many — a  dis- 
mal counterfeit  on  the  genuine  article. 

MOODY  WAS  A  MAGNET. 

It  is  not  easy  to  understand  how^  he  attained  unto  such  com- 
manding power;  but  the  fact  is  manifest.  The  best  and  the 
worst  believed  him;  he  was  the  matchless  leveller.  Nobles  and 
peasants  sat  side  by  side  on  his  platforms,  sang  out  of  the 
same  books,  and  rejoiced  in  the  same  joyful  hopes.     All  sects 


398  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

flocked  to  him,  and  each  claimed  him  as  its  own.  Even  ex- 
tremists and  fanatics  felt  that  there  was  a  place  in  him  for 
them,  and,  without  impoverishing  him,  enriched  themselves 
by  contact  with  him.  He  was  a  fountain  of  healing  waters, 
and  seemed  to  cure  all  manner  of  diseases.  The  most  culti- 
vated Christian  laborers  delighted  to  associate  with  him  in  his 
works.  Business  men  believed  him  on  sight,  quit  their  offices 
at  the  busiest  hours  to  hear  him,  and  gave  him  their  money 
by  the  thousands.  The  stranded  and  lost  felt  the  charm  of 
his  voice,  and  plucked  up  hope  for  a  new  struggle  as  they 
heard  him. 

No  man  ever  preached  to  so  many  persons,  or  put  his  im- 
press on  so  many  communities,  or  quickened  so  many  godly 
ministers  to  more  hopeful  and  effective  service.  He  had  vis- 
ited every  Protestant  country  on  the  earth,  preached  in  every 
leading  city,  and  in  his  summer  schools  had  taught  an  inter- 
national theological  seminary.  He  was  built  for  strength, 
and  he  worked  up  to  the  point  of  endurance  all  the  time,  and 
finally  fell  by  overstrain  of  his  powers. 

With  these  few  descriptive  sentences  I  desire  to  unite  some 
of  my 

PERSONAL  RECOLLECTIONS  OF  MOODY, 
which  will  in  some  degree  unveil  the  secrets  of  his  majestic 
life.  My  first  sight  of  Moody  was  interesting.  While  he  was 
on  his  first  visit  to  Baltimore,  I  was  invited  by  Dr.  Kerfoot, 
then  pastor  of  Eutaw  Place  Church,  to  assist  him  in  revival 
services.  On  the  night  of  my  arrival.  Dr.  Kerfoot  told  me 
that  several  ministers  were  to  meet  Mr.  Moody  privately  the 
next  morning,  and  that  he  had  arranged  for  me  to  be  in  the 
company.  This,  of  course,  was  a  delightful  surprise  and  priv- 
ilege to  me.  There  were  about  a  dozen,  possibly  a  few  more, 
ministers  present,  having  been  assembled  in  a  quiet  room  at 
the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  Hall.  Asking  for  silence,  Moody  said,  in  sub- 
stance: "My  brethren,  I  called  you  here  because  I  need  you. 
I  find  my  strength  small  in  this  city.     My  spirit  is  bound  and  I 


A  TRIBUTE  FROM  THE  SOUTH.  399 

cannot  rise.  I  brought  you  here  to  ask  you  to  pray  for  me. 
Pray  that  I  may  have  Hberty  and  do  my  work  in  BaUimore." 
By  a  common  impulse,  all  sank  to  their  knees,  and  for  a  time, 
of  which  no  one  took  note,  there  was  constant  crying.  One 
after  another  led,  until  each  one  had  prayed  aloud,  some  pos- 
sibly more  than  once.  It  was  a  fervent  and  thrilling  meeting, 
but  I  recall  no  prayer  except  that  offered  by  Moody.  That 
was  burned  into  the  very  tissue  of  my  being — a  revelation  of 
the  most  earnest  man  that  I  had  ever  touched  and,  after  the 
service  ceased,  I  almost  imagined  that  Moody  had  really  been 
glorified.  He  shook  Baltimore  that  winter.  It  has  been 
said  that  much  of  Moody's  power  was  explained  by  the  fact 
that  he  had  so  many  good  and  earnest  people  to  pray  for  him. 
It  is  said  that  his  great  work  done  on  the  other  side  of  the 
ocean  was  clearly  in  answer  to  the  agonizing  cries  of  two  good 
women  in  an  obscure  town  in  Scotland,  who,  though  they  had 
never  heard  nor  seen  him,  felt  that  he  was  the  man  to  bring 
salvation  to  their  pople.  He  was  sent  to  the  place  to  recover 
his  broken  health,  but  God  put  him  to  work,  and  the  fire 
kindled  there  spread  all  over  the  British  Isles. 

A  BEAUTIFUL  AND  EFFECTING  INCIDENT 

marked  the  beginning  of  Moody's  work  at  the  time  of  his  first 
visit  to  Richmond.  When  it  was  known  that  he  was  coming 
to  the  city,  quite  severe  criticisms  were  published  against  him, 
on  account  of  alleged  utterances  of  his  against  the  South  dur- 
ing the  war.  He  heard  of  these  attacks  before  coming,  and 
was  disposed  to  cancel  his  engagement;  but  our  committee 
would  not  hear  to  it.  He  came,  and  commenced  his  work  on 
Sunday  morning  at  nine  o'clock.  He  was  evidently  em- 
barrassed, and  spoke  with  constraint  and  uneasiness.  Just 
as  the  service  was  about  to  close,  he  descended  from  his  little, 
elevated  stand,  and  walked  to  the  front  of  the  choir  platform 
and  made  a  speech.  "Friends  of  Richmond,"  he  said,  "you 
have  been  reading  about  me  lately,  and  I  do  not  think  that  I 


400  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

said  the  things  against  the  South  with  which  I  am  charged; 
but  I  am  an  awful  fool,  and  have  said  many  foolish  things  in 
my  day.  If  I  ever  did  say  anything  against  the  South,  I  am 
sorry  for  it,  and  ask  you  to  forgive  me."  Instantly  a  ripple  of 
applause  commenced,  and  swelled  into  a  thundering  roar. 
Moody  bowed  his  head,  tears  were  in  his  eyes,  and  he  had  the 
heart  of  Richmond.  When  he  finished  his  work  in  Richmond, 
some  of  the  committee  insisted  that  I  make  a  farewell  address 
to  him,  assuring  him  of  our  love  and  gratitude.  I  told  him 
about  the  request,  during  the  last  service.  "Please  don't  do 
it,"  he  said,  "I  appreciate  it  all;  but  it  makes  me  feel  like 
a  fool  when  folks  get  to  hurrahing  over  me."  My  speech  did 
not  come  to  pass. 

Moody  was  thoroughly  sweet  and  kindly  in  his  spirit.  He 
had  a  peremptory  manner,  and  did  not  use  soft  phrases.  His 
will  was  something  terrible,  and  when  he  put  his  foot  down  it 
settled  many  issues,  and  almost  shook  the  earth.  He  had  his 
notions  of  how  things  must  be  done,  and  it  was  a  serious  day 
when  you  had  to  tackle  him.  I  was  chairman  of  the  Commit- 
tee of  Arrangements  on  the  occasion  of  his  visit  to  Richmond, 
and  w^e  had 

A  TILT  WITH  HIM. 
which  gave  us  some  anxiety  and  much  amusement.  We 
found  that  the  women  invariably  crowded  the  tabernacle  at 
night  so  early  that  the  business  men  could  not  find  entrance. 
The  ministers  of  the  city  met,  and,  at  their  request,  I  appoint- 
ed a  strong  committee  to  wait  on  Moody  and  tell  him  that  we 
desired  seats  reserved  for  men  at  night.  He  refused  utterly 
to  grant  the  request,  and  the  brethren  came  back  quite  crest- 
fallen. I  quietly  went  to  my  committee  on  ushers  and  had  a 
talk.  They  were  thoroughly  convinced  that  the  scats  ought 
to  be  reserved  and  I  told  the  gentlemen  that  1  would  give 
them  certain  instructions,  if  they  would  promise  me  not  to  let 
Mr.  Moody  drive  them  to  a  neglect  of  them.  They  assured 
me  that  anything  I  told  them  to  do  they  would  execute,  to  the 


A  TRIBUTE  FROM  THE  SOUTH.  401 

point  of  their  life.  I  gave  orders  that  1,000  seats  should  be 
roped  ofT  for  men  right  in  front  of  the  pulpit.  I  was  in  my 
seat,  right  by  Mr.  Moody's  place  on  his  stand,  when,  at  7.30 
he  came  in.  His  eye  instantly  saw  this  naked  territory,  the 
rest  of  the  vast  building  being  packed  to  overflowing.  "What 
does  that  mean?"  he  asked,  with  apparent  savagery.  I 
looked  straight  ahead  and  simply  said,  "Reserved  seats."  "I 
don't  like  and  don't  believe  in  it,"  he  said,  "That's  right.  We 
believe  in  men  in  Richmond  and  want  some  of  them  saved." 
"But  they  won't  come,"  he  said.  I  said:  "Mr.  Moody,  let  us 
make  a  compromise.  It  is  now  twenty-five  minutes  to  eight. 
If  that  space  has  one  empty  seat  in  it  at  five  minutes  to  eight, 
I  will  see  that  it  is  filled  before  you  begin  to  preach.'  He  said 
nothing.  In  a  few  minutes  a  stream  of  men  began  to  pour 
in  from  the  Main  street  door,  and  in  a  few  moments  every 
chair  was  taken,  and  a  great  mass  of  men  were  backed  up  at 
the  door,  and  at  five  minutes  to  eight  I  held  my  watch  to  his 
eye  and  asked,  "Do  you  feel  unhappy  about  the  vacant  seats?" 
A  hint  of  a  smile  played  over  his  face,  but  he  was  silent.  That 
night  he  closd  the  service  by  announcing:  "Half  of  this  half 
will  be  reserved  for  men  to-morrow  night."  The  incident 
pleased  me  chiefly  for  the  reason  that  beneath  his  imperious 
manner  he  was  so  kind  and  so  ready  to  accept  a  suggestion, 
when  its  wisdom  was  so  clearly  demonstrated.  He  loved  no 
method  for  its  own  sake.  He  never  poisoned  his  methods 
with  selfish  diplomacy,  and  it  was  impossible  for  him  to  i  esort 
to  expedients  that  were  doubtful.  He  had  no  private  scheme 
of  his  own  to  serve.     He  lived  for  his  Master  and  for  men. 

It  put  the  Christian  world  in  tears  to  read  that  at  his  last 
moment  he  said:  "I  see  the  world  receding;  heaven  is  open- 
ing, and  my  Savior  is  calling."  That  was  a  fine  way  for  the 
faithful  evangelist  to  bow  himself  away  from  the  world.  There 
must  have  been  a  royal  reception  when  he  arrived  in  the 
heavenly  city.     It  will  be  a  new  revival  to  meet  him  there. 


26 


w 


Moody  as  a  Preacher. 

E  have  only  space  for  two  of  Mr.  Moody's 
favorite  sermons.  Though  he  was  constantly 
revising  them  and  deHvering  them  in  diflferent 
forms,  yet  the  foundations  of  all  his  great  soul- 
winning  sermons  were  laid  in  the  first  few  years 
of  his  evangelistic  career.  As  the  very  heart  and  center  of 
all  his  teaching  was  Atonement  through  Christ,  who  "gave 
Himself  for  our  sins,"  we  present  the  substance  of  Mr. 
Moody's  great  sermon  on 

"WHAT  THINK  YE  OF  CHRIST?" 

One  of  the  sermons  which  Mr.  Moody  always  preached 
with  great  power  especially  to  university  students  as  at  Edin- 
burgh, Glasgow  and  Oxford,  was  upon  the  text,  "What  think 
ye  of  Christ?"  Matt.  xxii:42. 

We  find  in  this  chapter  that  the  Pharisees  had  made  two  at- 
tempts to  entangle  Him  in  His  talk  and  in  His  teaching.  The 
Sadducees  tried  it,  but  they  were  silenced  by  the  wisdom  of 
Christ.  After  they  had  appealed  to  Christ,  Christ  turns  and 
asks  them  a  question.  He  says,  "What  think  ye  of  Christ, 
whose  Son  is  He?"  And  they  said,  "He  is  the  Son  of  David." 
Then  says  Christ,  "How  then  did  David  call  Him  his  Lord?" 
and  they  were  silenced  forever.  The  Sadducees  did  not  be- 
lieve in  the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ.  They  would  never  have 
put  Him  to  death  if  they  had  believed  Him  to  be  the  God-man 
— what  He  proclaimed  Himself  to  be.  Now,  before  I  go  on, 
T  want  to  ask  you  a  question — not  what  you  think  of  this 
church  or  that  church;  not  what  you  think  of  this  minister  or 
that  minister;  not  what  you  think  of  this  creed  or  that  creed; 
not  what  you  think  of  this  denomination  or  that  denomina- 
tion. The  question  is  not  what  do  you  think  of  this  belief  or 
that  belief,  but  "What  think  ye  of  Christ?"     And  I  think  it  is 


MOODY  AS  A  PREACHER.  403 

a  proper  question.  There  isn't  a  noted  public  man  in  this 
country  but  that  if  I  ask  what  you  think  of  him,  you  would 
give  your  opinion  quite  freely.  I  hear  some  of  you  going 
out  of  the  hall  giving  your  opinion  about  the  sermon,  and 
sometimes  it  isn't  very  complimentary,  but  that  is  nothing. 
The  question  is  not  what  you  think  of  the  preaching,  or  what 
you  think  of  the  singing,  but  "What  think  ye  of  Christ?"  It 
is  of  very  little  account  what  you  think  of  the  minister;  it  is  of 
very  little  account  what  you  think  of  this  dogma  or  that 
dogma,  but  it  is  of  vast  importance  what  you  think  of  Christ. 
NEVER  MAN  SPAKE  LIKE  THIS  MAN. 
I  don't  think  there  is  any  one  in  this  hall,  unless  it  is  some 
little  infant,  but  ought  to  have  an  opinion  about  Christ.  I 
would  like  to  talk  about  Him  as  a  preacher,  for  there  never 
was  a  preacher  that  preached  as  He  did.  He  preached  in 
words  so  very  plain  that  little  boys,  like  these  down  here,  and 
little  girls  could  understand  them,  yet  the  deepest  theologians 
could  not  understand  their  meaning.  Coming  down  to-day,  I 
heard  the  little  birds  singing,  and  I  could  not  help  but  think  of 
His  saying,  "The  foxes  of  the  ground  have  holes,  and  the 
little  birds  of  the  air  have  nests,  but  the  Son  of  Man  hath  not 
whereon  to  lay  His  head."  He  makes  even  the  rocks  preach. 
I  am  told  by  travelers  in  the  East,  that  there  isn't  a  spot  that 
hasn't  got  some  sermon  of  His.  He  just  touched  them,  and 
He  made  them  preach.  There  isn't  a  prodigal  in  the  world 
but  that  knows  the  story  of  the  prodigal  son.  He  drew  a  pic- 
ture of  the  prodigal  so  vivid  that  you  can't  forget  it.  Try  as 
much  as  they  will  to  wipe  out  the  picture,  they  can't  forget  it; 
it  is  like  a  nail  in  a  sure  place.  Oh!  he  is  a  wonderful  preach- 
er. I  have  got  a  boy  six  years  old,  and  sometimes  he  comes 
and  tumbles  into  bed  with  me — sometimes  much  earlier  than 
I  wish  he  would — and  wants  to  have  mc  tell  him  a  story,  but 
there  is  no  story  interests  him  so  much  as  the  stories  that 
Christ  preaches.  Yes,  I  would  like  to  have  time  to  talk  to 
you,  and  ask  you  what  you  think  of  him  as  a  preacher. 


404  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

I  want  you  just  to  ask  yourselves  this  question:  Do  you  be- 
lieve in  Christ?  Do  you  believe  that  He  was  the  Son  of  God? 
Do  you  believe  that  He  was  the  God-man?  Do  you  believe 
that  He  was  with  God  before  the  morning  stars  sang  together 
and  voluntarily  left  heaven  and  came  down  into  this  world? 
Whose  son  was  he?  Was  he  the  Son  of  ]\Ian  and  the  Son  of 
God? 

WHO  WAS  HE,  THE  GOD-MAN? 
That  is  the  question.  Now,  if  I  had  come  into  this  city  to  find 
out  about  some  one,  to  find  out  about  his  character,  who  he 
was,  what  he  was,  there  would  be  two  classes  of  people  I 
would  go  to  see.  I  wouldn't  go  to  his  friends  only;  I  would 
go  to  his  enemies;  I  would  go  to  both  classes.  I  would  go 
to  his  friends  and  go  to  his  enemies,  and  see  what  his  enemies 
had  to  say  about  him,  before  I  gave  judgment  about  the  man. 
I  have  got  a  few  witnesses  I  want  to  examine,  and  I  will  just 
imagine  my  audience  is  the  jury.  My  witnesses  are  the  men 
that  talked  with  Christ — the  bitterest  enemies  that  he  had. 

The  first  I  would  like  to  summon  into  this  court  would  be 
the  Sadducees.  What  was  it  they  had  against  the  Son  of 
God?  Why,  He  proclaimed  the  resurrection,  and  they  didn't 
believe  in  the  resurrection.  They  didn't  believe  in  future  pun- 
ishment. They  didn't  believe  tha't  they  were  going  to  rise 
again.  And  they  put  a  question  to  Christ:  "Now  here  is  a  wo- 
man married  seven  times;  whose  wife  will  she  be  in  the  ressur- 
rection?"  And  Christ  answered  that  question.  And  then  the 
Pharisees  went  about  planning  how  they  might  destroy  Him. 
"This  man  receivcth  sinners  and  eateth  with  them" — that 
was  all  they  could  bring  against  Him.  That  is  what  we  like 
to  glory  in.  Suppose  we  could  summon  the  ofBcers  that  ar- 
rested Him.  The  Sanhedrim  sent  out  officers  to  arrest  the 
Son  of  God.  Where  did  they  find  Him?  Did  they  find  Him 
breaking  the  law?  Well,  these  officers,  they  found  Him  in 
Gethsemane.  What  was  He  doing?  Praying  for  a  lost 
world.     There  He  was,  the  drops  of  blood  trickling  down 


MOODY  AS  A  PREACHER.  405 

upon  His  cheeks,  for  we  are  told  that  He  sweat  great  drops  of 
blood.  They  set  false  witnesses  to  testify  against  Him.  They 
couldn't  find  any  for  a  long  time,  and  at  last  they  found  two 
men  that  would  come  in  and  swear  falsely,  and  what  did  they 
swear  to?  They  heard  Him  say  "Destroy  this  temple  and  I 
will  raise  it  up  again  in  three  days."  Destroy  this  temple, 
that  is — as  explained  by  John — destroy  this  body,  and  He 
would  raise  it  up. 

Let  us  bring  in  Caiaphas,  the  highest  ecclesiastical  poten- 
tate of  the  earth,  president  of  the  Sanhedrim,  the  chief  priest 
and  let  Caiaphas  open  his  lips  and  let  him  tell  us  why  he  con- 
demned the  Son  of  God  to  death.  They  did  not  go  and  sum- 
mon his  friends;  they  did  not  go  and  bring  up  Zaccheus  of 
Jericho,  they  did  not  bring  the  poor  man  that  had  those 
legions  of  devils  cast  out  of  him;  they  did  not  bring  the  blind 
man  of  Jericho — they  brought  His  enemies.  Let  Caiaphas 
tell  his  own  story — suppose  he  stood  in  my  place.  Caiaphas, 
just  tell  us  what  was  the  evidence  you  found  against  the  Son 
of  God.^  He  said  to  him,  "I  adjure  thee  by  the  living  God, 
Art  Thou  the  Son  of  God?"  And  He  said,  "I  am."  And 
Caiaphas  says:  ''When  I  heard  it  I  tore  my  mantle  and  said 
He  was  guilty  of  blasphemy."  That  is  what  we  glory  in,  His 
being  the  Son  of  God.  Stephen  said,  when  the  curtains  were 
lifted  he  looked  in  and  saw  Him  standing  at  the  right  hand  of 
God.  That  is  why  they  condemned  the  Son  of  God,  just  be- 
cause He  was  the  God-man.  If  He  wasn't  divine,  they  did 
right  to  put  Him  to  death ;  but  He  w^as. 

Let  Pilate  come  in;  now  he  is  an  impartial  witness.  He  is 
no  Jew,  he  has  no  prejudice  against  Christ.  Pilate,  just  speak 
out  now  and  tell  us  why  you  condemned  Him  to  the  scourge, 
and  to  be  crucified,  and  why  you  wrote  up  there  upon  the  cross 
'"This  is  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  King  of  the  Jews."  Tell  us  what 
did  you  find  in  Him;  what  fault?  And  hear  what  Pilate  says: 
"I  find  no  fault  in  Him."  Now  men  condemn  Pilate,  and  yet 
there  are  a  great  many  men  who  are  worse  than  Pilate,  for 


4o6  D WIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

they  find  fault  in  Jesus  Christ.  Said  he,  "I  will  chastise  this 
Man  and  let  Him  go,  for  I  find  no  fault  in  Him."  Uut  I  have 
got  a  woman  we  can  bring  in  as  a  witness;  it  was  Pilate's  wife. 
Whose  messenger  is  that  that  comes  from  the  palace?  He 
brings  a  message  from  Pilate's  wife:  "Have  nothing  to  do 
with  that  just  Person,  for  I  have  suffered  much  in  a  dream 
through  Him."     She  thought  He  was  a  just  Person. 

Yea,  my  friends,  I  will  bring  in  Judas,  the  very  prince  of 
traitors.  Suppose  I  should  say:  "Judas  you  sold  the  Son  of 
God  for  thirty  pieces  of  silver;  you  betrayed  Him;  you  knew 
more  about  Him  than  Caiaphas;  you  knew  more  about  Him 
than  Pilate.  Come  now,  Judas,  tell  us  why  you  betrayed 
Christ?  You  were  with  Him;  you  ate  with  Him,  and  drank 
with  Him,  and  slept  with  Him;  tell  us  what  you  think  of  Him? 
I  can  imagine  him  throw  down  the  thirty  pieces  of  silver,  as  he 
cries  in  agony,  "I  betrayed  innocent  blood."  Oh  yes,  it  is 
easy  to  condemn  Judas  nowadays;  but  how  many  men  are 
worse  than  that?  And  he  went  out  and  put  an  end  to  his  ex- 
istence. Now  bear  in  mind  I  am  not  calling  up  His  friends 
I  am  calling  up  His  enemies.  The  testimony  is  perfectly  over- 
whelming in  favor  of  Jesus  Christ  that  He  was  the  Son  of 
God,  as  well  as  the  Son  of  David.  But  here  is  another  wit- 
ness, and  that  is  the  Roman  centurion. 

He  occupied  the  same  position  as  the  sherifif  does  now.  This 
centurion  of  the  Roman  band  had  to  go  to  Calvary  and  put 
the  Son  of  God  to  death.  He  is  a  Gentile,  and  an  impartial 
judge;  let  him  tell  us  what  he  thinks  of  the  Son  of  God. 
Come,  now,  centurion,  you  had  charge  of  the  execution  of 
Jesus  of  Nazareth;  you  were  there  when  He  died.  Here  is 
his  testimony: 

"TRULY  THIS  WAS  THE  SON  OF  GOD." 

That  is  what  he  thought,  and  to  me  it  is  one  of  the  most  strik- 
ing things  in  all  scripture  that  God  made  every  man  testify 
that  He  was  not  guilty.     I  will  go  further.     I  will  take  the 


MOODY  AS  A  PREACHER.  40^ 

very  devils  in  hell,  for  God  made  them  testify;  and  what  did 
they  testify?  They  ealled  Him  "tiiat  Son  of  the  Most  High 
God."  They  knew  Him.  "Art  Thou  come  to  torment  us  be- 
fore our  time?"  And,  my  friends,  what  think  ye  to-day:  was 
He  the  Son  of  God?  And  did  He  die  for  a  sinful  world? 
What  think  ye  of  Christ  to-day?     Whose  Son  is  He? 

I  wish  I  had  time  to  examine  His  friends.  It  would  take 
all  day  iind  all  nig'ht,  and  I  think  the  whole  of  the  week. 
Suppose  I  could  examine  that  mighty  preacher,  the  prince  of 
preachers,  a  man  that  with  his  eloquence — and  he  had  the 
eloquence  of  heaven — drew  all  men  to  hear  him.  All  Judea 
and  Jerusalem  came  down  from  the  mountains  to  hear  him. 
He  drew  the  cities  of  Judea  into  the  wilderness  fo  hear  him 
preach.  What  mighty  power  he  had!  Now,  let  us  call  in 
this  wilderness  preacher,  who  looks  more  like  Elijah  than 
anv  other  prophet  since  Elijah.  Ask  John  the  Baptist,  What 
think  ye,  John,  of  Christ?  Hear  his  testimony:  "1  bear 
record  this  is  the  Son  of  God."  That  is  what  he  thought. 
He  forever  settled  that  question.  Another  time  he  says  of 
Christ, 

"BEHOLD  THE  LAMB  OF  GOD 
that  taketh  away  the  sins  of  the  world."  John  didn't  have 
but  one  text  after  that,  "Behold  the  Lamb  of  God  that  taketh 
away  the  sins  of  the  world."  John  said,  "He  must  increase, 
but  I  must  decrease."  O,  sinner,  what  do  you  think  of  Him 
to-day?  Do  you  think  He  will  save  you  if  you  trust  Him? 
Let  us  bring  in  some  more  of  these  witnesses.  There  is  Peter. 
You  know  there  was  a  time  he  swore  he  never  knew  Him.  Do 
you  think  he  would  say  now  with  a  curse,  "I  never  knew 
Him"?  We  are  told  that  he  was  crucified  with  his  head  down- 
ward because  he  was  not  worthy  to  be  crucified  in  the  same 
way  that  Christ  was.  Peter  thought  a  good  deal  of  Him.  I 
might  bring  in  doubting  Thomas;  he  didn't  believe  Christ  had 
risen,  but  Christ  says,  "Thomas,  did  you  say  that  you  wouldn't 
believe  unless  vou  saw?     Put  vour  fingers  in  mv  side  and  feel 


4o8  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

the  wound  there.  Put  your  fingers  in  the  palm  of  my  hand 
and  feel  the  wound  there,"  and  Thomas  cried  out, 

"MY  LORD  AND  MY  GOD." 

Convinced  of  the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ,  his  cloud  of  unbe- 
lief was  scattered  to  the  four  winds  of  heaven.  If  I  should 
call  up  that  beloved  disciple  who  knew  Him  better  than  any 
one  else  upon  earth,  it  would  take  a  great  while  to  find  out 
what  John  thought  of  Him.  I  could  just  summon  into  this 
audience  another  witness,  and  one  that  had  such  a  hatred 
against  Christ.  The  Frenchman  said,  "It  took  twelve  fisher- 
men to  establish  the  Kingdom  of  Christ,  and  one  Frenchman 
could  tear  it  down."  So  Saul  of  Tarsus  thought.  The  Son  of 
God  just  spoke  to  him,  "Saul!  Saul!  why  persecutest  thou 
Me?" 

"WHO  ART  THOU  LORD?" 

"I  am  Jesus,  whom  thou  persecutest."  "Lord,  what  wilt  thou 
have  me  do?"  One  glance  and  he  became  a  new  man.  O 
sinner,  may  you  hear  that  tender,  loving  voice  of  the  Savior, 
and  may  you  this  day  and  this  hour  think  well  of  the  Son  of 
God. 

O,  what  think  ye  of  Him?  Young  lady,  what  do  you 
think?  Mother,  what  do  you  think?  Do  you  think  enough 
of  Him  to  trust  Him?  If  you  want  to  please  a  father  here 
on  earth,  you  will  think  well  of  his  son,  and  if  you  want  to 
please  the  Heavenly  Father  you  will  think  well  of  His  Son. 

Now,  before  I  close,  let  me  ask  you  one  question — take  it 
home  with  you — and  that  is  this: 

"WHY  DON'T  YOU  LOVE  HIM?" 

Just  think  now,  can  you  give  a  reason  for  not  loving  Him? 
I  knew  an  infidel  who  was  asked  by  a  little  child  why  he  didn't 
love  Jesus,  and  he  finally  said  to  himself,  I  will  just  find  out 
why  I  don't  love  Jesus.  He  took  the  Bible  and  opened  it  to 
the  book  of  John — if  you  want  to  find  out  why  you  don't  love 


MOODY  AS  A  PREACHER.  409 

Jesus,  don't  look  there.  He  found  that  God  so  loved  the 
world  that  He  gave  Christ  for  it,  and  the  poor  infidel's  heart 
was  broken.  And  that  night  he  was  on  his  knees  crying  for 
mercy.  Oh,  sinner,  do  think  well  of  Christ  to-day!  Love 
Him  to-day!  Give  your  souls  to  Him  this  blessed  evening, 
the  last  Sabbath  of  this  blessed  month!  This  day  and  this 
hour  let  us  press  into  the  kingdom  of  God. 

NO  ROOM  FOR  CHRIST. 

During  the  last  week  of  Air.  Aloody's  great  meetings  in 
Glasgow,  in  May,  1874,  the  services  were  held  in  The  Crystal 
Palace.  At  nine  o'clock  Sunday  morning  he  spoke  to  the 
shop  girls  in  part  as  follows,  from  the  text:  "There  was  no 
room  for  them  in  the  inn." — Luke  ii:/. 

For  four  thousand  years  the  Jews  had  been  looking  for 
Christ  and  now  he  had  come.  And  the  first  we  read  of  Him 
is  that  there  is  no  room  for  Him  in  the  inn  at  Bethlehem. 

The  sinner's  heart  is  very  much  like  that  little  inn  at  Bethle- 
hem; it  has  no  room  for  Christ.  If  a  prince  comes  to  this 
country  from  some  foreign  land,  there  is  sure  to  be  room  for 
him,  and  the  best  you  have  is  not  good  enough  to  bestow  upon 
him.  Yet  here  is  the  Prince  of  Heaven,  the  Prince  of  Peace, 
come  to  earth  and  there  is  no  room  for  Him  in  the  inn  at 
Bethlehem! 

Think  what  He  came  for;  He  came  to  seek  and  to  save  that 
which  was  lost, 

TO  REDEEM  A  LOST  WORLD. 

He  might  have  come  with  all  the  pomp  and  grandeur  of 
heaven;  He  might  have  had  a  million  of  angels  in  his  train. 
But  He  left  behind  Him  all  the  glory  He  had  with  His  Father, 
and  stooped  from  the  throne  and  went  clear  down  into  the 
manger,  that  He  might  get  His  arm  under  the  vilest  sinner 
and  lift  him  up  to  the  heights  of  glory. 

Some  one  has  said  that  the  Jews  did  not  know  He  was  the 
Messiah,  or  they  would  have  given  Him  a  glorious  reception. 


410  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

Would  they?  Why,  \vc  read  that  when  the  wise  men  came 
with  the  ghid  tidings  that  He  was  the  King  of  the  Jews,  "Her- 
od and  all  Jerusalem  was  troubled."  There  was  no  one  in 
Jerusalem  that  wanted  Him  any  more  than  in  Bethlehem. 
Herod  hunted  for  His  life  as  if  He  were  some  terrible  mur- 
derer, so  that  His  parents  were  obliged  to  flee  into  a  foreign 
land. 

Has  the  world  grown  any  better  during  these  eighteen  hun- 
dred years?     Is    Christ  wanted  to-day? 

If  He  should  come  again,  would  He  be  welcome?  Would 
the  nations  of  the  earth  receive  Him  with  delight  and  glad- 
ness? What  nation  would  make  room  for  Him  to-day?  If 
it  were  put  to  the  public  vote,  what  nation  would  vote  to  have 
Him  come  back  to  be  their  king?  Talk  about  England  and 
America  being  Christian  nations;  do  you  think  either  of  them 
would  invite  Him  to  come?  Has  America  got  room  for  Him? 
Eighteen  hundred  years  have  rolled  by  since  He  went  away, 
and  more  has  been  written  about  Him  and  said  about  Him 
than  any  other  man,  or  thousand  men,  or  million  men,  and 
yet  there  is  no  nation  under  heaven  that  wants  Him.  When 
He  was  down  here  there  was  not  a  village  in  any  part  of  the 
country  that  wanted  Him.  He  went  to  Nazareth,  where  He 
was  brought  up;  He  went  into  the  synagogue  and  began  to 
tell  out  the  glad  tidings.  They  took  Him  to  the  brow  of  tho 
hill,  and  would  have  cast  Him  into  hell  if  they  could.  The)- 
put  Him  out  of  town.  And  there  is  not  a  town  or  village 
under  the  sun  to-day  but  would  do  the  same.  People  say  the 
world  is  growing  so  much  better;  but,  as  I  have  said,  there  is 
not  a  nation  anywhere  to-day  that  wants  Him.  Does  Ger- 
many, or  France,  or  England  or  America.? 

Not  only  that;  there  is  something  a  good  deal  worse  than 
that.  There  is  hardly  a  church  in  Christendom  that  wants 
Him.  Go  to  any  of  the  churches  next  Sunday,  and  ask  if 
they  would  vote  to  have  Him  come  back.  Why,  my  friends, 
the  church  has  not  got  room  for  Him.     She  is  not  praying 


MOODY  AS  A  PREACHER.  411 

and  longing  for  His  return.  Go  down  to  the  Exchange  and 
ask  if  they  have  got  room  for  Him.  Why,  a  good  deal  of  the 
business  would  have  to  be  done  on  dififerent  principles.  Men 
would  say,  "We  cannot  quite  make  so  much  money,  and  we 
don't  want  Him."  If  it  should  be  put  to  the  vote  in  congress, 
would  they  have  Him  back?  Is  there  room  for  Him  among 
our  statesmen  and  those  who  are  making  our  laws?  Would 
they  invite  Him  back?  Why,  there  would  be  a  great  commo- 
tion among  the  nations  of  the  earth  if  He  were  to  come.  The 
fact  is,  there  is  no  room  for  Him  in  the  world  yet.  Our  homes, 
our  churches,  the  nations  of  the  earth,  are  like  that  little  inn 
at  Bethlehem.  There  is  room  for  everything  else;  but  in  the 
church  and  the  world  to-day  is  "no  room  for  Him."  It  is  one 
thing  to  talk  about  Christ  and  salvation,  but  when  we  conic  to 
talk  about  the  return  of  a  personal  Christ,  is  there  a  church 
that  is  crying  for  Him? 

It  is  time  for  every  true  child  of  God  to  wake  out  of  his 
sleep,  to  trim  his  lamp  and  make  ready  for  the  return  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ.  If  nations  of  the  world,  if  the  churches, 
are  not  longing  for  His  return, 

LET  US  MAKE  ROOM  FOR  HIM. 

Look  at  the  hundreds  and  thousands  hastening  down  to  death 
and  ruin!  Let  us  invite  our  rejected  King  back  into  this 
world.  Do  not  let  us  be  like  the  men  of  Decapolis,  who, 
when  Christ  snapped  the  fetters  from  the  poor  demoniac, 
came  to  Him,  and  with  one  accord  constrained  Him  to  depart 
out  of  their  coasts.  There  was  no  room  for  Him  in  Decapolis. 
There  is  a  passage  in  the  seventh  chapter  of  John,  last  verse, 
that  is  very  touching.  It  has  often  brought  tears  to  my  eyes 
— "And  every  man  went  into  his  own  house."  Then  we  read 
in  the  opening  words  of  the  eighth  chapter  (the  two  chapters 
should  not  be  divided;  they  are  really  one) — "Jesus  went  into 
the  Mount  of  Olives."  There  was  no  room  for  Him  in  Jerus- 
alem that  night;  no  one  wanted  Him.     He  had  no  house  of 


412  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

His  own  to  which  He  could  go.  "The  foxes  have  holes,  the 
birds  of  the  air  have  nests,  but  the  Son  of  Man  hath  not  where 
to  lay  His  head." 

Oh,  friends,  thifik  of  the  Prince  of  Glory  coming  down  into 
this  world  and  having  no  place  to  lay  His  head!  There  was 
no  one  to  receive  Him. 

He  had  to  go  into  the  Mount  of  Olives  and  spent  the  night 
there  alone.  I  have  often  thought  that  I  would  like  to  have 
had  a  house  in  Jerusalem  that  night  and  to  have  invited  Him 
there.  But  if  I  had,  I  suppose  my  door  would  have  been 
locked  against  Him  like  the  rest.  There  is  one  thing  we  can 
all  do — our  hearts  can  receive  Him,  and  that  will  please  Him 
best  of  all. 

What  a  blessing  Martha  got  by  receiving  Him  into  her 
house. 

THERE  WAS  ONE  HOME  IN  BETHANY 
always  open  to  Him.  He  was  a  welcome  guest  there,  and  He 
often  went  when  He  was  tired  and  weary.  They  had  room  for 
Him  there,  and  He  always  goes  where  there  is  room  for  Him. 
The  moment  you  make  room  for  Him  in  your  hearts  He  will 
come  in.  Was  it  not  the  best  thing  Martha  and  Mary  could 
have  done  to  make  room  for  Him?  One  day  sickness  came 
to  that  dwelling,  and  Lazarus  lay  on  his  dying  bed.  They  had 
physicians,  I  suppose,  from  Jerusalem,  and  the  moment  they 
pronounced  him  to  be  in  danger  they  sent  a  message  and  told 
Jesus  that  he  was  sick.  The  messenger  goes  and  tells  Jesus 
about  it,  but  before  he  gets  there  Lazarus  is  dead.  There  is 
sorrow  that  night  in  Bethany.  I  can  see  those  two  broken- 
hearted sisters  weeping  over  the  body.  They  laid  him  away  in 
the  little  grave-yard  at  Bethany,  and  they  came  back  to  their 
dark  and  desolate  home.  Many  of  you  know  how  dark  a 
home  seems  when  some  loved  one  is  gone.  Some  friends 
came  to  comfort  them;  but  what  poor  comforters  they  were, 
compared  to  Hin\  who  was  absent.  The  messenger  came 
back  and  told  them  what  Jesus  had  said,  and  at  last  He  comes 


MOODY  AS  A  PREACHER.  413 

Himself.  Out  goes  Martha  to  meet  Him,  and  she  says,  "If 
Thou  hadst  been  here  my  brother  had  not  died."  He  caUs  for 
Mary,  and  away  goes  Martha  and  tells  her,  "The  Master  is 
come  and  calleth  for  thee."  Is  there  a  Mary  here  to-day 
whom  the  Master  is  calling?  Up  rises  Mary  to  meet  Him, 
and  she,  too,  says,  like  Martha,  "If  Thou  hadst  been  here  my 
brother  had  not  died."  On  that  occasion  were  uttered  some 
of  the  sublimest  words  that  ever  fell  from  the  lips  of  the  Son  of 
God — "I  am  the  Resurrection  and  the  Life;  he  that  believcth 
in  Me,  though  he  were  dead,  yet  shall  he  live:  and  whosoever 
liveth  and  believeth  in  Me  shall  never  die." 

I  can  see  these  two  sisters,  one  on  each  side  of  Him.  They 
tell  Him  all  about  their  brother's  sickness  and  his  last  mes- 
sages, and  the  Son  of  God  begins  to  weep.  If  there  is  a  brok- 
en heart  here  to-day,  Jesus  is  in  full  sympathy  with  you.  You 
can  have 

NO  FRIEND  LIKE  THE  SON  OF  GOD. 

He  has  got  power  to  help  you.  They  go  to  the  grave,  and 
Jesus  bids  them  take  away  the  stone.  Martha's  faith  begins 
to  stagger.  Some  one  has  said  it  was  a  blessed  privilege  to 
roll  away  the  stone.  It  is  a  blessed  privilege  to  do  anything 
the  Master  tells  us  to  do.  With  a  word  the  Son  of  God  calls 
him  up — "Lazarus  come  forth."  The  moment  Lazarus  heard 
His  voice  he  knew  it,  and  forth  he  came  out  of  the  sepulchre. 
Look  at  him  as  he  goes  back  to  the  house,  arm-in-arm  with 
the  Son  of  God.  How  astonished  the  people  must  have  been; 
they  must  have  gone  mad  almost  with  excitement.  Look 
into  that  little  home:  There  is  Jesus  at  the  table,  and  Lazar- 
us; Martha  still  serves,  and  Mary  looks  on  in  wonder. 

Was  it  not  the  best  thing  INIartha  could  have  done  to  make 
room  for  Christ?  You  do  not  know  how  near  death  is.  The 
best  thing  you  can  do  is  to  receive  the  Resurrection  and  Life 
into  your  home  and  your  heart.  Let  us  welcome  Him  into 
our  hearts.     Say  this  minute, 


414  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

"WELCOME,  THRICE  WELCOME,  SON  OF  GOD, 

into  this  heart  of  mine."  He  will  come.  What  does  He  say? 
Hark!  "Behold  I  stand  at  the  door  and  knock;  if  any  man 
hear  my  voice  and  will  open  the  door,  I  will  come  in  to  him 
and  sup  with  him  and  he  with  Me!"  Does  your  heart  throb? 
Do  you  hear  the  still  small  voice  whispering  to  you  to  let  Him 
in?  That  is  Jesus;  He  wants  to  come  into  your  heart  to-day. 
Oh,  receive  Him! 

Then  let  death  come;  you  can  shout  over  death  and  the 
grave  and  hell.  May  God  help  you  to  make  room  for  Christ. 
You  make  room  for  Him  here,  and  He  will  make  room  for  you 
up  yonder.  He  will  come  back  by-and-by  and  receive  His 
own  out  of  this  dark  world  into  that  home  He  has  gone  to 
prepare,  "As  many  as  received  Him  to  them  gave  He  power 
to  become  the  sons  of  God." 

Did  you  ever  have  a  period  in  your  life  when  you  felt  as  if 
no  one  wanted  you?  I  had  that  experience  for  about  two 
days,  and  it  nearly  broke  my  heart.  I  wanted  to  die.  It  was 
a  terrible  thought  that  no  one  wanted  me.  I  was  a  stranger 
in  a  strange  city  looking  for  work.  I  went  from  pl^ce  to 
place,  and  got  only  a  gruff  answer — "No,  sir;"  "No,  sir."  No 
one  wanted  me.  It  seemed  as  if  the  Son  of  God  must  have 
had  something  of  that  feeling  down  here;  no  one  wanted  Him. 
The  world  did  not  want  Him;  it  took  Him  and  put  Him  to 
death.  If  He  should  come  here,  and  go  from  one  to  another, 
would  you  say,  "No,  Jesus,  I  do  not  want  you;  go  Thy  way 
this  time;"  or  would  you 

OPEN  YOUR  HE"ART  AND  LET  HIM  IN? 

In  one  place  it  speaks  of  His  locks  being  wet  with  the  dews  of 
the  night.  Oh,  may  God  help  every  unsaved  soul  to  receive 
the  Son  of  God.  He  has  gone  up  on  high  to  make  room  there 
for  us.  We  are  told  in  one  place  that  He  looked  toward 
heaven  and  sighed.  He  saw  sickness  and  disease  and  death 
all  around  Him,  and  no  one  wanted  Him,  so  He  looked  to- 


MOODY  AS  A  PREACHER.  415 

ward  home.  I  can  imagine  He  was  home-sick.  There  He 
was  loved  by  all.  Oh,  sinner,  won't  you  have  this  reject- 
ed King?  Won't  you  do  as  Martha  and  Mary  did — receive 
Him  into  your  heart  and  home  this  very  hour? 

HIS  SPIRIT,  ELOQUENCE  AND  POWER. 

We  feel  that  it  is  scarcely  within  the  power  of  human  lan- 
guage to  bring  this  brief  sketch  of  the  Life  and  Work  of 
Dwight  L.  Moody  to  a  fitting  close;  or  to  gather  up  in  a  single 
paragraph  or  two,  the  consuming  zeal  and  tireless  energy 
with  which  he  wrought  for  the  salvation  of  men.  His  was  the 
inspiration  of  love  for  Christ  and  for  souls  which  brought  into 
use  every  faculty  and  power  of  soul  and  body.  1  Ic  kcj)t  back 
no  part  of  the  price,  but  laid  his  all  upon  the  altar,  lo  the  utter- 
most farthing.  To  the  last  ounce  of  energy  his  soul  could 
connuand  from  his  wearied  frame  at  Kansas  City,  he  sold 
his  life  as  dearly  as  possible. 

For  many  years  his  soul  had  been  fed  upon  the  finest  of  the 
wheat.  He  had  received  the  Word  of  God  as  the  very  bread 
of  life.  -His  soul  was  ever  refreshing  itself  with  copious 
draughts  of  the  water  of  hfe;  and  according  to  his  need  hidden 
springs  gushed  forth  in  the  desert.  To  his  vision  the  grace  of 
God  whicbbringeth  salvation  appeared  as  clear  and  glorious 
as  the  sun  shining  at  mid-day  out  of  a  cloudless  sky.  The 
grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  receiving  sinners,  the  salva- 
tion which  is  bv  grace  without  the  deeds  of  the  law,  the  gift  of 
God  which  is  eternal  life  to  every  one  that  believeth,  the  gos- 
pel of  deliverance  from  the  power  of  sin  through  faith  in  Jesus 
Christ — this  gospel  he  jjroclaimed  in  a  sini])le,  scriptural,  but 
most  earnest  and  inlense  manner. 

He  proclaimed  a  crucifietl  and  glorified  Christ.  He  hon- 
ored the  Holy  Ghost  by  believing  in  His  constant  presence 
and  power.  And  as  he  preached  this  gospel  to  thousands 
and  tens  of  thousands  sitting  before  him,  motionless  and  al- 
most breathless,  sin-stricken  and  conscience-smitten,  as  he 


4i6  DWIGHT  L.  MOODY. 

beheld  the  marks  of  sin  upon  many  faces,  and  felt  the  pres- 
ence of  the  Holy  Ghost  searching  the  hearts  of  the  people 
while  old  men  trembled  with  emotion  and  strong  men  strove 
in  vain  to  keep  back  reluctant  tears;  as  he  gazed  upon  the 
drooping  heads  of  sorrowing  women  while  children  looked 
up  to  him  with  eager,  wondering  eyes — then  it  was  that  the 
power  of  the  living  Spirit  of  God  seemed  to  come  upon  him, 
then  he  realized  the  blessed  fascination  of  the  gospel  of  Christ, 
and  with  thrilling  tones  of  gladness  declared  the  old,  old  story 
to  the  multitudes  hurrying  on  to  judgment. 

Who  that  has  ever  felt  this  tide  of  spiritual  emotion  rush- 
ing through  his  soul  like  waves  of  electric  energy,  can  ever 
forget  the  superhuman,  the  divine  eloquence  wdiich  flowed 
forth  in  his  burning  words?  In  the  preceding  pages  many  and 
varied  and  eloquent  testimonials  to  Mr.  Moody  have  been  pre- 
sented to  our  readers;  and  we  have  neither  the  space  nor  the 
inclination  to  seek  to  analyze  afresh  the  secrets,  or  the  ele- 
ments of  his  power  as  a  preacher. 

But  if  to  be  able  to  draw  people  by  the  tens  of  thousands  to 
hear  the  gospel,  if  by  the  power  of  impassioned  speech  these 
multitudes  can  be  swayed  to  laughter  or  moved  to  tears,  or 
wrought  up  to  breathless  and  almost  fearful  expectancy  of 
that  tremendous  "therefore"  of  conviction  which  smites  men 
in  anguish  to  the  ground  and  compels  them  to  cry  out,  "What 
must  Vv'e  do  to  be  saved?" — if  these  are  elements  of  power  then 
Mr.  Moody  was  one  of  the  most  powerful  and  eloquent 
preachers  of  the  nineteenth  century.  His  was  the  all-powerful 
eloquence  of  a  man  full  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  of  faith,  and 
fired  with  indomitable  zeal  for  the  glory  of  God  and  the  sal- 
vation of  men.  And  when  you  multiply  that  power  and  zeal 
and  eloquence  and  success  by  more  than  thirty  years  of  the 
most  indefatigable  toil,  it  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  Mr. 
Moody  was  the  mightiest  preacher  who  has  ever  lived  since 
the  days  of  Paul  the  great  Apostle  to  the  Gentiles. 


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